DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
909 AM EDT SUN SEP 14 2008
..DROUGHT CONDITIONS EASE ACROSS WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA ...
SYNOPSIS...
TROPICAL STORM HANNA PROVIDED MUCH NEEDED RELIEF FROM THE DROUGHT
ACROSS THE SOUTHERN PIEDMONT AREAS OF THE CAROLINAS LAST WEEK.
HOWEVER RAINFALL ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS OF NORTH CAROLINA AND MUCH OF
THE UPSTATE INTO PARTS OF NORTHEAST GEORGIA RECEIVED VERY LITTLE
RAIN.
AS OF SEPTEMBER 9 EXCEPTIONAL DROUGHT CONDITIONS REMAINED OVER MUCH
OF FOOTHILLS AND PIEDMONT OF SOUTH CAROLINA. EXTREME DROUGHT
CONDITIONS COVER MUCH OF THE REST OF THE WESTERN CAROLINAS AND
NORTHEAST GEORGIA. FOR DETAILED COUNTY BY COUNTY DROUGHT STATUS SEE
U. S. DROUGHT MONITOR...HTTP://WWW.DROUGHT.UNL.EDU/DM/MONITOR.HTML
SUMMARY OF IMPACTS...
VOLUNTARY WATER RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT FOR MOST WATER SYSTEMS
ACROSS NORTH CAROLINA. MANDATORY RESTRICTIONS ARE NOW IN EFFECT FOR
ALEXANDER COUNTY WATER DISTRICTS...GASTON COUNTY IN BELMONT AND
BESSEMER CITY...MOST LOCATIONS IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...
BURKE ...CALDWELL...CATAWBA...CLEVELAND AND MECKLENBURG COUNTY. MOST
OF THE OTHER COUNTIES HAVE VOLUNTARY RESTRICTIONS IN NORTH CAROLINA.
VOLUNTARY WATER RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT FOR MOST WATER SYSTEMS
ACROSS SOUTH CAROLINA. MANDATORY RESTRICTIONS ARE NOW IN EFFECT FOR
THE TOWNS OF GREENWOOD...CHESTER...SALEM...ROCK
CREEK...SANTUCK...AND MOST LOCATIONS IN YORK COUNTY.
VOLUNTARY WATER RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT FOR MOST WATER SYSTEMS IN
NORTHEAST GEORGIA.
SOIL MOISTURE...
42 PERCENT OF THE TOP SOIL MOISTURE IN SOUTH CAROLINA IS SHORT TO
VERY SHORT. NORTH CAROLINA IS 31 PERCENT AND GEORGIA IS 28 PERCENT.
GROUNDWATER CONDITIONS...
HERE ARE THE CURRENT WELL WATER LEVELS.....
LOCATION LEVELS (FEET BELOW SURFACE)
CURRENT RECORD DATE OF
OCCURRENCE
AVERY CNTY NR LINVILLE NC 2.34 FT 2.83 8/25/2008
DAVIE CNTY MOCKSVILLE NC 23.55 FT 24.03 8/26/2008
HAYWOOD CNTY NR CRUSO NC 6.03 FT 6.62 8/24/2008
IREDELL CNTY TURNERSVILLE NC 29.66 FT 29.78 8/07/2008
MECKLENBURG CNTY NR OAKDALE NC 5.58 FT 8.56 8/14/2002
ROWAN CNTY BARBER NC 15.54 FT 16.64 8/26/2008
SWAIN CNTY NR BRYSON CITY NC 6.97 FT 7.32 8/25/2008
TRANSYLVANIA CNTY BLANTYRE NC 39.07 FT 39.63 12/10/2000
OCONEE CNTY TAMASSEE SC 31.43 FT 31.83 9/14/2002
ANDERSON CNTY WILLIAMSTON SC 4.38 FT 4.54 9/13/2007
SPARTANBURG CNTY CROFT SP SC 46.98 FT 46.89 8/28/2008
RIVER AND STREAM FLOW CONDITIONS...
IN NORTH CAROLINA...OF THE 41 REAL-TIME REPORTING SITES IN WESTERN
PART OF THE STATE...6 SITES WERE LESS THAN 10 PERCENT OF NORMAL FLOW.
17 SITES WERE 10 TO 24 PERCENT OF NORMAL RANGE AND 18 SITES WERE IN
THE 25 TO 75 PERCENT RANGE.
IN SOUTH CAROLINA...OF THE 14 REAL-TIME REPORTING SITES IN THE
UPSTATE... 10 SITE WERE LESS THAN 10 PERCENT OF NORMAL FLOW. 3 SITES
WERE 10 TO 25 PERCENT RANGE. 1 SITE WAS BETWEEN 25 TO 75 PERCENT OF
NORMAL FLOW RANGE.
IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA...OF THE 4 REAL-TIME REPORTING SITES...4 SITES
ARE IN THE 10 TO 24 PERCENT OF NORMAL FLOW RANGE.
CURRENT LAKE LEVELS....
LOCATION CURRENT LEVEL NORMAL LEVEL
HARTWELL DAM 645.54 FT 658.87 FT.
RUSSELL DAM 471.57 FT 473.95 FT.
JOCASSEE DAM 74.60 FT 99.50 FT.
KEOWEE DAM 95.29 FT 99.00 FT.
MOST OF THE LAKES ON THE CATAWBA RIVER REMAIN AT STAGE 3 DROUGHT
LEVELS. NANTAHALA LAKES WERE MAINLY AT STAGE 1 DROUGHT LEVELS. DURING
THE PAST WEEK THE LAKE LEVELS HAVE RISEN SOME AND MOST ARE AT OR
SLIGHTLY ABOVE NORMAL LEVELS.
IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA...LAKE LEVELS ALONG THE TALLULAH RIVER ARE AT
OR SLIGHTLY BELOW FULL POOL.
AGRICULTURE IMPACTS...
PERCENT OF PASTURE IN POOR TO VERY POOR CONDITIONS ARE AS
FOLLOWS...AS
OF JUNE 8... 39 PERCENT IN SOUTH CAROLINA...35 IN GEORGIA...AND 16 IN
NORTH CAROLINA.
FIRE DANGER HAZARDS...
OBSERVED FIRE DANGER LEVELS WERE IN THE LOW RANGE ACROSS THE
AREA.
CLIMATE SUMMARY...
RAINFALL OVER THE PAST 7 DAYS (SEPT 6 THUR 14) RANGED FROM NEAR
NORMAL...MAINLY IN NORTH CAROLINA TO 1 INCH BELOW NORMAL ACROSS
SOUTH CAROLINA AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA.
PRECIPITATION NEEDED TO END DROUGHT INDICATED RAINFALL DEFICITS 2
INCHES IN MECKLENBURG COUNTY AREA TO 12 INCHES IN THE NORTH CAROLINA
MOUNTAINS. IN SOUTH CAROLINA 16.50 INCHES TO 7 INCHES AND IN
NORTHEAST GEORGIA...2 INCHES.
PRECIPITATION/TEMPERATURE OUTLOOK...
6 TO 10 DAY FORECAST...SEPT 19 TO SEPT 23 2008 INDICATES NEAR NORMAL
TEMPERATURES AND SLIGHTLY ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION AMOUNTS IN
WESTERN CAROLINAS AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA AREAS.
30 DAY OUTLOOK...APRIL
INDICATES NEAR NORMAL TEMPERATURES AND PRECIPITATION.
90 DAY OUTLOOK...APRIL THROUGH JUNE...
THE OUTLOOK INDICATES EQUAL CHANCES OF BELOW OR ABOVE NORMAL
PRECIPITATION AND TEMPERATURES.
HYDROLOGIC SUMMARY AND OUTLOOK...
NEAR NORMAL CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO OCCUR BY THE END OF NOVEMBER.
NEXT ISSUANCE DATE...
THIS PRODUCT WILL BE UPDATED ON OCTOBER 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 /USE LOWER CASE LETTERS/
U. S. DROUGHT MONITOR...HTTP://WWW.DROUGHT.UNL.EDU/DM/MONITOR.HTML
NOAA DROUGHT PAGE.......HTTP://WWW.DROUGHT.NOAA.GOV
NORTH CAROLINA DROUGHT PAGE...HTTP://WWW.NCWATER.ORG/DROUGHT/
SOUTH CAROLINA DROUGHT PAGE...
HTTP://WWW.DNR.SC.GOV/CLIMATE/SCO/DROUGHT/DROUGHT_CURRENT_INFO.PHP
ADDITIONAL RIVER INFORMATION
NWS...HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/AHPS/
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$$