by Keith Anderson
Well, it is summer!
But the West Gippsland area's brown and yellow countryside tells a story of an unusual dry stretch across the region.
January was the sixth successive month that rainfall was well down on the 115-year average.
At the Bureau of Meteorology's weather station at Nilma North just 10.2 millimetres of rain was recorded last month. Warragul, that recorded 22 millimetres, was damp in comparison but not enough to spark any noticeable tinge of green on parched paddocks and lawns.
The January average for the area is 58 millimetres.
A scorching start to February has followed.

The thermometer climbed to 40.3 degrees at Nilma North last Sunday, Fe