Drought — North Fulton, Georgia

2023-11-21 to 2023-11-30 · North Fulton, Georgia

Event narrative

According to the Drought Monitor, short-term D2 Severe Drought conditions began over North Fulton county on November 21, 2023 and continued through the end of the month.

Wider weather episode

Persistent dry conditions exacerbated the short-term drought conditions over Georgia through November. By the end of October, D3 Extreme Drought had developed over northwest Georgia, and by early November, this area had worsened to D4 Exceptional Drought and expanded into the neighboring counties. Statistically speaking, at the start of November, 11.4 percent of the state was in D2 Severe Drought or worse, with 4.6 percent being D3 Extreme Drought or worse. At the peak of the drought, as shown in the Drought Monitor map on November 21, 2023, 24.7 percent of the state was in D2 Severe Drought or worse, with 9.7 percent being D3 Extreme Drought or worse.

In total, November yielded 0.75 to 4 inches of rain of rain over the state. North of Interstate 20, rainfall amounts were generally 0.75 to 1.75 inches (15 to 40 percent of normal) except over Dade and Walker counties, which accumulated 3.5 to 4 inches (or 55 to 65 percent of normal). South of this area, rainfall amounts were 2 to 4 inches, or 40 to 90 percent of normal. In general, these rainfall amounts fell during only 2-3 impactful weather events during the month.

In the November 30 Drought Information Statement issued by the NWS Atlanta office, 30-day rainfall totals were included for some of the driest climate record locations: Rome (RMG) reported 1.57 inches (38% of normal), Atlanta (ATL) reported 2.01 inches (50 percent of normal), Gainesville (GVL) reported 0.92 inches (22 percent of normal), Athens (AHN) reported 1.60 inches (43 percent of normal), and Peachtree-DeKalb (PDK) reported 1.16 inches (28 percent of normal).

Through November, soil moisture was below normal and the National Drought Mitigation Center's Condition Monitoring Observer Reports from farmers reported small improvements with the end-of-the-month rainfall but continuing fair pasture conditions. Farmers reported supplemental feeding was required for cattle and livestock. Additionally, through the month there were reports of delayed harvesting or planting of seasonal crops and heavy degree of loss with crop yield, or complete or near crop failure. A new concern for seed germination was reported due to the combined dry conditions and cooler temperatures. The NWS Atlanta office also received an increased number of requests for weather information for wildfires. Many north Georgia localities introduced burn bans and increased education outreach efforts.

The drought conditions peaked November 21, with improvements by month's end tied to new, significant rainfall amounts (included in the totals above). The drought continued to see some improvement in December.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1144621. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.