Drought and early heatwaves are laying the stage for a dry, hot summer in the western part of the United States. As of June 22, almost 91 percent of the West was under drought, with 55 percent suffering extreme or exceptional dryness, while two back-to-back heatwaves worsened soil and vegetation drying, raising the risk of wildfires. (Photo : Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) Meanwhile, water supplies are dwindling: according to the Associated Press, Lake Mead, the reservoir built by the Hoover Dam, is at its lowest level since it was initially filled in the 1930s, while California's reservoirs are 50 percent lower than typical for this time of year.