With long-awaited rain in the forecast in the coming days, officials at Seattle Public Utilities asked 1.5 million residents to conserve water until enough rain falls to fill the strained mountain reservoirs that have been depleted after months of drought and little rainfall, ABC News reports.
The coming rains, however, won’t be enough to completely alleviate the lack of rain over the summer. The region typically sees 26 inches of rain from May through September; this year, less than eight inches of rain fell during those months. Ten percent of the state is in severe drought; another 43% is under a severe drought alert.