California is now officially out from under its emergency drought restrictions. But experts warn that the drought will return.

And with summer on its way, there are worries about how the state’s economy will cope with the next drought.

CGTN’s Phil Lavelle reports.

California’s long, hot summer that many thought would never end, has done just that. The drought is officially over.

But not for everyone.

Especially at Lake Cachuma, which is regarded in a way, as the poster child of this drought.

Some said the drought isn’t really over until the lake gets its water back. It has started to happen, with the lake currently just under being half-full. A few months ago, it was at just 7 percent.

“We could use another huge storm like the ones we just had, and fill her up and then we’d be in a more comfortable state,” local shopkeeper Beverly Keller said.

People by the marina, though, are more nervous about the next serious drought.

“We live and die by the water,” Monty Keller, the manager of the local marina said. “It was really hard for us, especially this year. We’re just trying our best to keep the doors open. You really can’t plan for it. You know, it is what it is.”

But it looks like a drought is definitely returning to California.

California’s rain levels vary more than anywhere else in the United States. When most eastern states fluctuate by 10 percent, according to researchers, California’s rain levels can go 40-to-50 percent in either direction.

But will California’s economy be able to cope with the next drought?