Parts of Connecticut were in moderate drought or abnormally dry. Did recent downpours end it?

The record-setting rains this weekend may well have eliminated the abnormally dry conditions across Connecticut, especially in Greater Hartford, according to WFSB’s chief meteorologist.

And more rain is expected this weekend.

Mark Dixon said he won’t know officially until Thursday whether the rains ended the moderate drought that extends in a swath across the state’s midsection, but said it’s possible. That’s when the drought monitor is updated.

“This weekend, we had 1 to 4 inches of rain,” Dixon said. “Prior to this weekend, we had over 2-inch deficits across the state. So those were basically wiped away this weekend.”

Bradley International Airport recorded a daily record for April 23 of 3.13 inches on Sunday, with an additional 0.18 inches Saturday, Dixon said.

Gary Lessor, assistant to the director of Meteorological Studies at Western Connecticut State University, and a weather expert for The Courant, agreed, “rainfall around the state this weekend was generally between 1 and 4.5 inches, with the majority between 1.5 and 3.5 inches.

“When the Drought Monitor releases its latest drought severity map on Thursday it will likely show modest improvement, especially in central and eastern portions of the state,” Lessor said.

“Areas currently classified as abnormally dry should shrink in coverage and southern areas that are in a moderate drought should see at least some areas reclassified as abnormally dry,” Lessor said.

Lessor said other totals from the rain Saturday in Sunday included: 4.50 inches in Granby, 4.29 inches in North Granby, 4.01 inches in Unionville, 3.95 inches in Willington, 3.81 inches in Ashford, 3.71 inches in Bristol, 3.49 inches in Milford, and 3.32 inches in Hamden.

“We had heavy rain, no major flooding and now possess more adequate moisture levels heading into the growing season,” Lessor said.

Dixon said the Hartford area now is in a surplus for April and for the year.

“Since Jan. 1, our surplus is over 2 inches now,” he said. “So we went from being in this drought-ish realm with those big deficits to now wiping them away and going into a surplus for the month and for the year. So that’s pretty good too.”

Bridgeport had 2.15 inches of rain Sunday. “Bridgeport for the month is half an inch behind and for the year is around just shy of an inch behind, so nothing too remarkable,” Dixon said.

As of last Thursday, all of the state except for a small area around Suffield, Enfield and Somers was at least abnormally dry. A band basically between Interstates 95 and 84 from west to east was in moderate drought, the next level up the dryness scale.

“Prior to last Thursday, the southern two-thirds of Connecticut were considered abnormally dry,” Dixon said. “And then with the Thursday, updating, the entire state went abnormally dry. And then there was a swath … that was considered moderate drought. So that was a pretty notable uptick last Thursday.”

Two weekends of rain should help a lot, though, he said. “We’ve got more rain coming in this weekend. So Sunday right now, especially later in the day and Sunday night, looks pretty soggy,” he said. “So that would help as well.

“It looks like, if anything, we would be curbing any sort of drought concerns in the near term, as opposed to going in the opposite direction and exacerbating them,” Dixon said.

Ed Stannard can be reached at estannard@courant.com.