Georgia’s drought is worsening. After running a surplus of rainfall through the first half of the year, we have seen a much drier pattern this second half, and there’s no immediate relief in sight.
From January to June, Cornelia saw a surplus of nearly 7″ of rainfall. Since then, we have run 4.53″ below normal for July-October. The worst stretch has come from September 1 to now, where nearly all that deficit comes from, 4.35″.
Because of this, the US Drought Monitor has highlighted much of North Georgia under a short-term drought.
The worst drought conditions can be found in the far NW and SW corners of the state, where a D2 (severe) drought is currently occurring. The higher elevations are currently in a D1, or moderate, drought, with the rest of the region currently considered abnormally dry.
Unfortunately, these conditions will worsen over the next 7-10 days or longer as another spell of dry weather moves through the region. The image below shows the latest 10 day rainfall forecast from the GFS weather model. You can see the rain hole over the southeast as high pressure dominates.
Hopefully, we will see the rain return, but for now, keep an eye on fire danger over the coming days, as it is likely to increase.
