Most of Hall County is now suffering from extreme drought, according to the map released Thursday morning by the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Portions of surrounding counties - Gwinnett, Forsyth, Dawson, Lumpkin, White and Habersham - also saw drought conditions worsen over the last week to the extreme level.
Extreme drought is characterized by a number of factors:
- Majority of hay/grazing is lost
- Outdoor burn bans are implemented
- Landscaping business is negatively affected; agriculture suffers economic loss
- Trees have early leaf drop
- Ground is cracking
- ​Rivers and livestock ponds are dry; wells are drying up; mandatory water conservation is implemented
WDUN meteorologist John Wetherbee said even with the extreme drought designation, he doesn't expect local governments to call for water restrictions just yet, since cooler temperatures and rain are in the forecast for the upcoming weekend.
"We'll probably let Mother Nature take its course and help us recover - or start to recover - from extreme drought," Wetherbee said.
Wetherbee also warned North Georgia residents that it will take time to reverse current dry conditions.
"Drought is cumulative and ending drought is cumulative," Wetherbee said. "We need several weeks of the kind of rain we're expecting over the next week. We just don't want it to all come at once. If it comes at once, it tends to run off quickly and is not as effective in terms of trying to end a drought."
The U.S Drought Monitor map for Oct. 3, 2019 showed 100% of the state of Georgia impacted by some level of drought.
