New authorities maps present practically all the West is in drought and it’s not even summer time but: “That is unprecedented”

In an unprecedented move, Southern California officials declared a water shortage emergency and asked roughly 6 million residents to limit all out of doors watering to simply as soon as a week.  

"We knew climate change would stress our water supplies and we've been making ready for it but we did not know it will occur this fast," mentioned Gloria Gray, chairwoman of the Metropolitan Water District Board of Administrators.  

The most recent authorities maps present almost all of the West is in drought, and 95% of California is struggling extreme or extreme drought.

"That is actual. That is severe. This is unprecedented," said Adel Hagekhalil, general manager for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.  

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

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

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

Reager said 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 now we have fires, and in California, there's simply this collection of consequences that we anticipate," mentioned Reager.