Drought tightening its grip; Lanier near record low

UNDATED - The drought is tightening its grip again on parts of northeast Georgia.

Rabun County and the eastern part of Union County are now suffering "exceptional" drought conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. That is the most severe of the categories used to measure drought conditions.

And, the long-term forecast shows little chance of any improvement over the winter months, according to Assistant State Climatologist Pam Knox.

The level of Lake Lanier was at 1,051.69 Thursday morning, down about 2 feet from a month ago and within a foot of the all-time low that was set last December.