Bone-Dry Conditions Getting Worse In Oklahoma

Many people across Oklahoma are hoping and praying they'll get rain.

New drought data shows the situation is getting worse across much of the state.

The U.S. Drought Monitor report released on Thursday shows exceptional drought -- the worst possible category -- covering most of western Oklahoma and a swath of northeastern Oklahoma. 

8/16/2012 Related Story: Exceptional Drought Conditions Expand Across Oklahoma

In Okmulgee County, it's starting to look more like the desert than prairie.

Like a lot of people in Oklahoma, when there are a few drops of rain, Debbie Micheau said it always seems to miss her place west of Okmulgee.

"We can't get anything," Micheau said.

It's dry. Bone dry.

"Man, this [ground] is just hard as a rock," Micheau said. "Hard as a rock."

They only got one cutting of hay this year. They've given up on the garden.

Her stressed pecan trees are dropping limbs all over.

"We've lived here 20 years, and I've never seen it this bad," Micheau said.

The latest drought monitor report shows conditions continue to worsen.

It shows exceptional drought, the worst possible category, covering most of western Oklahoma and a good part of the northeastern part of the state.

For the stretch of May first until now, it's been one of the driest periods ever in this part of Oklahoma, since the state started keeping records in 1921.

"It is crazy," Micheau said. "It's like living out in the desert or something."

And those cracks get longer and wider every single day.

Micheau is worried about the foundation on her home cracking. She's concerned about the livelihoods of Oklahoma farmers and ranchers.

"Sad. We're so desperate for water."

And she's afraid of how bad it could still get if Oklahoma doesn't get rain soon.

"Praying," Micheau said. "Desperately."

Read meteorologist Mike Grogan's latest blog entry: Pattern Change to Stunt Worsening Drought

In the Tulsa metro area, there is a chance of rain Thursday night, 30 percent chance on Friday and a 50 percent chance on Saturday.

Tulsa has received .39 of an inch of rain in August, which is about an inch below normal, according to the National Weather Service.