New authorities maps present practically the entire West is in drought and it is not even summer time but: “This is unprecedented”

In an unprecedented move, Southern California officers declared a water scarcity emergency and asked roughly 6 million residents to restrict all outside watering to just once a week.  

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

The latest authorities maps show almost all the West is in drought, and 95% of California is struggling extreme or excessive drought.

"This is actual. This is severe. This is unprecedented," said Adel Hagekhalil, common supervisor for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.  

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

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

"The issue with local weather change is that it takes all of the historic patterns and form of shifts them," NASA scientist Dr. JT Reager instructed CBS Information' Ben Tracy. 

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

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