PHOTOS: Texas' Worst Drought in a Century

2011-08-11T22:46:00.000Z

Carcasses of fresh water crabs, carps and alligators have become a common sight in Texas, as the state reels from its most severe drought, made worse by an unrelenting heat wave.

With about six inches of rain this year, water bodies across the state are drying up, and entire ecosystems are at risk of being wiped out. In apocalyptic scenes, bodies of water have turned red as oxygen levels in the water continue to fall.

The drought has hit farmers hard. About 61% of Texas' cotton crop is in poor or very poor condition, compared with 7% last year, which has sent cotton futures soaring.

And then there are the urban hazards. Pavements have reportedly exploded because of the heat, trains are moving slower as tracks expand in the heat. In fact, it has been reported that extreme heat caused a freight train derailment in East Texas.

Water bodies across Texas have dried up as it faces its worst ever drought. Here the superintendent of the waste and water department walks on the dried bed of Lake E.V. Spence in Robert Lee

Entire ecosystems are at risk of being wiped out as lack of rain and 100 degree plus temperatures have dried up lakes, rivers and reservoirs

The remains of a pan head catfish are seen at the O.C. Fisher Lake

Water levels dipped so low that they allowed the recovery of what is believed to be an object from the space shuttle Columbia that scattered over East Texas in 2003

Many remaining water bodies have been turned red by bacteria called Chromatiaceae that thrive in low-oxygen environments

Farmers have been hit hard by the drought, and 61% of Texas' cotton crop is in poor condition because of the severe weather

Many ranchers have been forced to sell their herds at livestock auctions

In the absence of grass, cattle have taken to eating prickly cactuses that often leave them with bloody noses

13 people have died in the heat wave that has hit southern U.S. states, here an elephant cools off at the Houston Zoo as the temperature has tipped 100 degrees

Water restrictions are in place as the drought and heat wave continue. Stores have seen a massive surge in the sale of bottled water

Desperate Texans hang a sign on the fence of a ranch near Hondo, hoping for end end to the severe weather

PHOTOS: Texas' Worst Drought In A Century

Water bodies across Texas have dried up as it faces its worst ever drought. Here the superintendent of the waste and water department walks on the dried bed of Lake E.V. Spence in Robert Lee

Entire ecosystems are at risk of being wiped out as lack of rain and 100 degree plus temperatures have dried up lakes, rivers and reservoirs

The remains of a pan head catfish are seen at the O.C. Fisher Lake

Water levels dipped so low that they allowed the recovery of what is believed to be an object from the space shuttle Columbia that scattered over East Texas in 2003

Many remaining water bodies have been turned red by bacteria called Chromatiaceae that thrive in low-oxygen environments

Farmers have been hit hard by the drought, and 61% of Texas' cotton crop is in poor condition because of the severe weather

Many ranchers have been forced to sell their herds at livestock auctions

In the absence of grass, cattle have taken to eating prickly cactuses that often leave them with bloody noses

13 people have died in the heat wave that has hit southern U.S. states, here an elephant cools off at the Houston Zoo as the temperature has tipped 100 degrees

Water restrictions are in place as the drought and heat wave continue. Stores have seen a massive surge in the sale of bottled water

Desperate Texans hang a sign on the fence of a ranch near Hondo, hoping for end end to the severe weather

Now check out images of New Yorker's dealing with the heat wave...

PICTURES OF HEATPOCALYPSE 2011 >

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