Drought Information Statement for southeast Mississippi, southwest Alabama, and the western Florida Panhandle Valid: October 23, 2025 This product will be updated November 20, 2025 (or sooner) if drought conditions change significantly All currently available products: drought.gov/drought-information-statements (https://drought.gov/drought-information-statements) Previous local statements: weather.gov/mob/DroughtInformationStatement (https://www.weather.gov/mob/DroughtInformationStatement) Regional Drought Status Updates: https://www.drought.gov/drought-status-updates (https://www.drought.gov/drought-status-updates) DROUGHT WORSENS OVER THE CENTRAL GULF COAST INTERIOR Extreme drought expands over portions of the interior. Severe drought holds over the eastern zones, to up across U.S. Highway 84. U.S. Drought Monitor Latest U.S. Drought Monitor (https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/data/png/current/current_huc03_trd.png) for the Southeast US and central Gulf Coast Drought Intensity and Extent: D3 (Extreme Drought): Eastern Choctaw, northern Clarke and western Wilcox Co.’s in Alabama. D2 (Severe Drought): Portions of the area along and north of U.S Highway 84. Areas from Georgiana, Evergreen, Brewton to Andalusia Alabama. Northeast Santa Rosa to northern and eastern Okaloosa Co.’s in Florida. D1 (Moderate Drought): Much of the remainder of southwest Alabama and the northwest Florida Panhandle. D0: (Abnormally Dry): Much of interior southeast Mississippi. Recent Change in Drought Intensity Latest 1-week change map (https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/data/chng/png/current/current_huc03_chng_1W.png) for the Southeast US and central Gulf Coast One Week Drought Monitor Class Change: Drought Worsened: Eastern Choctaw, northern Clarke and western Wilcox Co.’s in Alabama. No Change: Much of the remainder of the local area. Precipitation Summary of conditions and impacts: Over the past month, much of the central Gulf Coast has been experiencing a long duration of precipitation deficits, ranging from around 25 to 50% of normal. There were a few bright spots mainly over Wayne Co. Mississippi, a small section of western Clarke and southern Baldwin Co.’s in Alabama where isolated occurrences of excessive rain has resulted in a surplus over these areas. Temperature Summary of conditions and impacts: Due to the dryness, temperatures have been some 4 to 8° above normal on average over the past 30-Days. Due to the abnormal warmth, amount of evaporation has accelerated drought development and spread. Summary of Impacts See Condition Monitoring Observer Reports (CMOR) (https://droughtimpacts.unl.edu/Tools/ConditionMonitoringObservations.aspx) and Drought Impacts Reporter (https://www.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/46afe627bb60422f85944d70069c09cf) Hydrologic Impacts The US Geological Survey (USGS) indicates that flow and stage on several local area river and stream points are at below to much below normal levels. Rivers and streams that are experiencing lower water levels, will likely result in what is typically deeply submerged objects being likely closer to the water’s surface or in some cases exposed, presenting a waterway hazard for safe recreational boating and commercial navigation. Agricultural Impacts Crop condition in the driest of areas is very poor. Crop disease and insect damage elevated. Pasture lands provide little to no livestock feed. Supplemental feeding is required to maintain livestock condition. Hardness of ground increases difficulty of plowing, resulting in a higher frequency of plow blades becoming dull adding to the expense for change outs. Fire Hazard Impacts The National Interagency Fire Center in Boise ID calls for November to be at above normal risk for wildland fire for the central and southern sections of Alabama and Mississippi . Outdoor burning is strongly discouraged until conditions improve. For counties under burn bans, penalties for burning will likely result in hefty fines. Mitigation Actions Water conservation techniques are strongly encouraged in drought areas. Please refer to your municipality and/or your water provider for mitigation information. Local water restriction ordinances may be in place. To view the most current stages and flow for each state’s, stream and river points, please visit: MS: https://waterwatch.usgs.gov/index.php?r=ms&m=real (https://waterwatch.usgs.gov/index.php?r=ms&m=real) AL: https://waterwatch.usgs.gov/index.php?r=al&m=real (https://waterwatch.usgs.gov/index.php?r=ms&m=real) FL: https://waterwatch.usgs.gov/index.php?r=fl&m=real (https://waterwatch.usgs.gov/index.php?r=ms&m=real) Hydrologic Conditions and Impacts Summary of conditions and impacts: Stages on several river and/or stream points are at below to much below normal levels. There are many other points, though, that have responded positively to the weekend frontal passage rains from October 18th and 19th. Unfortunately, this is expected to be of short duration. Summary of conditions and impacts: The deep south is reflecting widespread soil moisture deficiencies, leading to poor crop health. Supplemental feeding likely required to maintain livestock. Latest Statewide Top Soil Moisture Deficiencies: Mississippi: 56%, Alabama: 45%, and Florida: 29%. Latest Statewide Sub-Soil Moisture Deficiencies: Mississippi: 57%, Alabama: 40%, and Florida: 30%. It is recommended that farmers reach out to local USDA office for details on available funding assistance. Agricultural Impacts Summary of conditions and impacts: It’s important to note that in the event of strong cold frontal passages, periods of critically low daytime humidity in combination with gusty northerly winds will bring periods of increased wildfire potential. Looking ahead to November, the areal threat of significant wildland fire potential becomes above normal and expands from the Appalachians to central and southern portions of both Alabama and Mississippi. Know the law before burning. Latest Burn Bans and/or Advisories By State: Mississippi: https://www.mfc.ms.gov/ (https://www.mfc.ms.gov/) Alabama: https://forestry.alabama.gov/ (https://forestry.alabama.gov/) Florida: https://www.fdacs.gov/Forest-Wildfire/Wildland-Fire (https://www.fdacs.gov/Forest-Wildfire/Wildland-Fire) Fire Hazard Impacts Wildfire Potential Outlooks (https://www.nifc.gov/nicc/predictive-services/outlooks) from the National Interagency Coordination Center 7-Day Precipitation Forecast Summary of conditions and impacts: Rainfall the next 7-Days could add up 1 to 2 inches primarily west of I-65, southward to portions of the Gulf coast. Although these rainfall amounts will be beneficial in the shorter term, little improvement in drought intensity is anticipated. Long-Range Outlooks Summary of conditions and impacts: Unfortunately, the outlook going into November for much needed precipitation is not looking great over the deep south. Latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC (https://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/) webpage Drought Outlook Latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC (https://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/) webpage Summary of conditions and impacts: Drought conditions look to hold tough over the next three months, persisting for much of the local area.