Drought draining Tampa's water

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Officials say a reservoir that supplements the water supply for the Tampa area has dropped to a historically low level because of severe drought.

Unless more than 20 inches of rain falls over the next few months, the huge reservoir in eastern Hillsborough County may no longer be useful. The water in the two-mile-long concrete bowl is typically used to supplement water drawn from the ground in well fields across the region.

For now, the reservoir provides about 20 million gallons daily to homes and businesses in Tampa Bay area counties.

The drought means there is no source to replenish water pumped from the reservoir. That means well fields will be taxed even more, drawing down the aquifer, draining lakes and wetlands and even shrinking the flow of rivers.

More than 90 percent of the state is in some level of drought.