New authorities maps present practically all the West is in drought and it isn’t even summer yet: “This is unprecedented”

In an unprecedented transfer, Southern California officials declared a water scarcity emergency and requested roughly 6 million residents to limit all out of doors watering to only once per week.  

"We knew climate change would stress our water supplies and we've been preparing for it but we did not know it would happen this fast," said Gloria Grey, chairwoman of the Metropolitan Water District Board of Directors.  

The newest authorities maps present almost the entire West is in drought, and 95% of California is suffering severe or excessive drought.

"That is real. That is critical. That is unprecedented," mentioned Adel Hagekhalil, normal manager for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.  

California just isn't alone as reservoirs throughout the West are draining.  

Lake Mead, the most important reservoir in the nation formed by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, needs a new pump to ensure water can circulation to Las Vegas. 

"The problem with climate change is that it takes all of the historic patterns and sort of shifts them," NASA scientist Dr. JT Reager informed CBS Information' Ben Tracy. 

Reager mentioned the West is in a 22-year megadrought, as climate change makes it hotter and drier. 

"We're simply beginning to see the dominoes fall. It's drier, we're beginning to see less water in our reservoirs, and we have now fires, and in California, there's just this sequence of penalties that we anticipate," said Reager.