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

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

"We knew local weather change would stress our water provides and we have been getting ready for it but we didn't know it will occur this quick," stated Gloria Gray, chairwoman of the Metropolitan Water District Board of Administrators.  

The latest authorities maps present nearly the entire West is in drought, and 95% of California is suffering extreme or excessive drought.

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

California will not be alone as reservoirs throughout the West are draining.  

Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the nation shaped by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, needs a new pump to ensure water can flow to Las Vegas. 

"The issue with local weather change is that it takes all the historical patterns and type of shifts them," NASA scientist Dr. JT Reager told 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 is drier, we're beginning to see less water in our reservoirs, and now we have fires, and in California, there's just this series of penalties that we anticipate," stated Reager.