DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
1243 PM EST WED NOV 26 2008
...EXCEPTIONAL DROUGHT CONDITIONS BECOME WORSE OVER THE CENTRAL
MOUNTAINS OF NORTH CAROLINA DESPITE RECENT SNOWFALL...
SYNOPSIS...
THE COMBINATION OF LACK OF PRECIPITATION OVER THE PAST TWO WEEKS AND
MOST RIVER LEVELS DROPPING TO 1 PERCENT OF NORMAL FLOW HAS LED TO A
CHANGE IN THE DROUGHT STATUS ACROSS THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS OF NORTH
CAROLINA. THE EXTREME DROUGHT CONDITIONS ACROSS SWAIN...NORTHERN
JACKSON...HAYWOOD AND THE WESTERN PARTS OF HENDERSON...BUNCOMBE AND
MADISON HAVE BEEN UPGRADED TO THE EXCEPTIONAL DROUGHT CATEGORY.
WELL LEVELS HAVE NOT REBOUNDED IN THESE AREAS EVEN THOUGH SOME RAIN
AND SNOW HAS FALLEN. THE HEAVIEST SNOW FALL HAS FALLEN IN AREAS TO
THE NORTH AND EAST OF THE FRENCH BROAD BASIN.
CURRENT DROUGHT CONDITIONS AS OF NOVEMBER 26, 2008
EXCEPTIONAL DROUGHT CONDITIONS COVERED MOST OF THE NORTHWEST PART OF
THE UPSTATE...NORTHEAST GEORGIA...THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS
OF NORTH CAROLINA.
MODERATE TO SEVERE DROUGHT CONDITIONS EXTEND FROM SOUTHWEST OF
CHARLOTTE TO THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS OF NORTH CAROLINA.
FOR DETAILED COUNTY BY COUNTY DROUGHT STATUS SEE U.S. DROUGHT
MONITOR. U.S. DROUGHT MONITOR...
http://www.drought.unl.edu/dm/monitor.html
SUMMARY OF IMPACTS...
NORTH CAROLINA...
BROAD RIVER BASIN....VOLUNTARY WATER RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT FOR
MOST WATER SYSTEMS IN THE BASIN. WHILE SOME MANDATORY WATER
RESTRICTIONS IN CLEVELAND AND POLK COUNTIES ARE IN EFFECT.
CATAWBA RIVER BASIN....MANDATORY WATER RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT
FOR MOST WATER SYSTEMS IN THE BASIN. WHILE VOLUNTARY WATER
RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT FOR GASTON...MECKLENBURG...LINCOLN...
MCDOWELL...CATAWBA AND ALEXANDER COUNTIES.
FRENCH BROAD AND LITTLE TENNESSEE BASINS...VOLUNTARY WATER
RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT FOR MOST WATER SYSTEMS WITH SOME
MANDATORY WATER RESTRICTIONS IN BUNCOMBE...TRANSYLVANIA...MADISON
...AVERY...JACKSON AND GRAHAM.
SOUTH CAROLINA...
VOLUNTARY WATER RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT FOR MOST WATER SYSTEMS.
WHILE MANDATORY WATER RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT FOR PARTS OR ALL OF
THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...ANDERSON...CHESTER...GREENWOOD...OCONEE...
UNION AND YORK.
NORTHEAST GEORGIA...
COUNTIES IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA REMAIN UNDER STATE DROUGHT RESPONSE
LEVEL FOUR WHICH CALLS FOR MANDATORY WATER RESTRICTIONS.
SOIL MOISTURE...AS OF NOVEMBER 25 2008...
50 TO 75 PERCENT OF THE TOPSOIL MOISTURE IN THE WESTERN CAROLINA'S
AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA REMAINS SHORT TO VERY SHORT.
GROUNDWATER CONDITIONS...
HERE ARE THE CURRENT WELL WATER LEVELS.....
LOCATION LEVELS (FEET BELOW SURFACE)
CURRENT RECORD DATE OF OCCURRENCE
AVERY CNTY NR LINVILLE NC 2.14 FT 2.82 8/24/2008
DAVIE CNTY MOCKSVILLE NC 20.38 FT 23.15 8/30/2002
HAYWOOD CNTY NR CRUSO NC 6.55 FT 6.90 1/05/1998
IREDELL CNTY TURNERSVILLE NC 21.02 FT 21.02 7/29/2008
MECKLENBURG CNTY NR OAKDALE NC 5.47 FT 8.28 8/07/2002
ROWAN CNTY BARBER NC 8.64 FT 16.64 8/26/2008
SWAIN CNTY NR BRYSON CITY NC 6.84 FT 7.50 10/22/2008
TRANSYLVANIA CNTY BLANTYRE NC 41.73 FT 41.73 11/25/2008
OCONEE CNTY TAMASSEE SC 31.98 FT 31.98 11/25/2008
ANDERSON CNTY WILLIAMSTON SC 3.92 FT 5.68 9/12/2002
SPARTANBURG CNTY CROFT SP SC 47.46 FT 47.46 11/25/2008
RIVER AND STREAM FLOW CONDITIONS...
7 DAY AVERAGE STREAM FLOW CONDITIONS ENDING NOVEMBER 25....
IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA...OF THE 41 REAL-TIME REPORTING SITES...
5 SITES WERE IN THE 25 TO 75 PERCENT OF NORMAL FLOW RANGE...6 SITES
WERE WERE 10 TO 24 PERCENT OF NORMAL FLOW...AND 30 SITES WERE IN THE
10 PERCENT OR LESS RANGE. OF THESE 7 WERE IN THE 1 PERCENT OF FLOW
RANGE.
IN UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...OF THE 12 REAL-TIME REPORTING SITES...11
SITES WERE IN THE 1 TO 3 PERCENT OF NORMAL FLOW RANGE. ONE SITE ON
THE CATAWBA RIVER NEAR ROCKHILL HAD 31 PERCENT OF NORMAL FLOW.
IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA...3 OF THE REAL-TIME REPORTING SITES ARE
REPORTING 1-3 PERCENT OF NORMAL FLOW.
CURRENT LAKE LEVELS....
LOCATION CURRENT LEVEL NORMAL LEVEL
HARTWELL DAM 638.18 FT 658.87 FT.
RUSSELL DAM 470.29 FT 473.95 FT.
JOCASSEE DAM 76.45 FT 99.50 FT.
KEOWEE DAM 93.84 FT 99.00 FT.
HARTWELL LAKE IS STILL AT DROUGHT LEVEL 3.
MOST OF THE LAKES ON THE CATAWBA RIVER REMAIN AT STAGE 3 DROUGHT
LEVELS...BUT ARE GENERALLY WITHIN A FOOT OF TARGET LEVELS.
IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA...LAKE LEVELS ALONG THE TALLULAH RIVER ARE
1-2 FEET BELOW FULL POOL.
AGRICULTURE IMPACTS...AS OF NOVEMBER 25...
PERCENT OF PASTURE IN POOR TO VERY POOR CONDITIONS REMAIN AROUND
40 TO 50 IN SOUTH CAROLINA...GEORGIA AND NORTH CAROLINA.
FIRE DANGER HAZARDS...AS OF NOVEMBER 24.
ACROSS WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA THE FIRE DANGER CATEGORY IS IN THE LOW
TO MODERATE RANGE. ACROSS NORTHEAST GEORGIA AND THE UPSTATE THE
CATEGORY WAS LOW DUE TO THE RECENT RAINS.
CLIMATE SUMMARY...
YEAR TO DATE RAINFALL DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL ARE AS FOLLOWS;
NORTHEAST GEORGIA...11.31 INCHES BELOW NORMAL
SOUTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS...21.61 INCHES BELOW NORMAL
REST OF UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...13.59 INCHES BELOW NORMAL
NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS...7.35 TO 9.55 INCHES BELOW NORMAL
NORTH CAROLINA SOUTHERN PIEDMONT...5.44 BELOW NORMAL
NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL PIEDMONT...1.86 INCHES BELOW NORMAL
PRECIPITATION/TEMPERATURE OUTLOOK...
6 TO 10 DAY FORECAST...NOVEMBER 300 TO DECEMBER 4
INDICATES SLIGHTLY BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES AND PRECIPITATION
CHANCES.
30 DAY OUTLOOK...DECEMBER
INDICATES EQUAL CHANCES OF NEAR...BELOW OR ABOVE NORMAL
TEMPERATURES...AND SLIGHTLY BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION.
90 DAY OUTLOOK...DECEMBER THROUGH FEBRUARY...
THE OUTLOOK INDICATES SLIGHTLY ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES AND
SLIGHTLY BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION.
HYDROLOGIC SUMMARY AND OUTLOOK...
THE WINTER OUTLOOK INDICATES BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION OVER THE
CAROLINAS AND GEORGIA. THUS THE DROUGHT IS EXPECTED TO PERSIST.
TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TO BE SLIGHTLY WARMER ACROSS THE WESTERN
CAROLINAS INTO NORTHEAST GEORGIA.
NEXT ISSUANCE DATE...
THIS PRODUCT WILL BE UPDATED ON DECEMBER 10TH OR SOONER IF
NECESSARY IN RESPONSE TO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN CONDITIONS.
RELATED WEB SITES...
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON CURRENT DROUGHT CONDITIONS MAY BE FOUND AT
THE FOLLOWING WEB ADDRESSES
U.S. DROUGHT MONITOR...
http://www.drought.unl.edu/dm/monitor.html
NOAA DROUGHT PAGE......
http://www.drought.noaa.gov/
STATE DROUGHT PAGES...
NC... http://www.ncwater.org/drought/
SC... http://www.dnr.sc.gov/climate/sco/Drought/drought_current_info.php
GA... http://www.caes.uga.edu/topics/disasters/drought/
ADDITIONAL RIVER INFORMATION
NWS...
http://www.weather.gov/water/
USGS...
http://water.usgs.gov/waterwatch/
CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER...
http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS...
THE DROUGHT MONITOR IS A MULTI-AGENCY EFFORT INVOLVING NOAA'S
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AND NATIONAL CLIMATIC DATA CENTER...THE
USDA...STATE AND REGIONAL CENTER CLIMATOLOGIST AND THE NATIONAL
DROUGHT MITIGATION CENTER. INFORMATION FOR THIS STATEMENT HAS BEEN
GATHERED FROM NWS AND FAA OBSERVATION SITES...USDA...USFS...USCE ...
DUKE ENERGY...GA POWER AND STATE CLIMATE OFFICES.
QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS...
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT THIS DROUGHT STATEMENT...
PLEASE CONTACT...
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
1549 GSP DRIVE
GREER SC 29651
PHONE 864-848-3859
GSP.webmaster@noaa.gov