Drought — Rockbridge, Virginia

2024-07-01 to 2024-07-31 · Rockbridge, Virginia

Event narrative

Severe Drought conditions spread west during the early half of July, eventually including all of Rockbridge County by July 16th. On July 16th, the previous 30 days of precipitation were observed to be between 1.00 and 1.50 inches with locally higher amounts, or between 20 and 35 percent of normal for that period. NASA SPoRT LIS data estimated on the 16th that average soil moisture in the top 100 cm of soil had fallen to the 2nd percentile. Streamflows, including for the Maury River and Kerrs Creek, were observed to be below the 10th percentile per the USGS WaterWatch website and, in some cases, were near record-low flows. Crop production continued to be heavily impacted by the dry conditions, with stunted growth of most corn across the county. Hay production was also heavily impacted, with grasses in many pastures becoming dormant due the combination of dryness and abnormally high warmth.

Wider weather episode

Severe Drought conditions expanded to include most of the NWS Blacksburg service area by the middle of July after roughly 45 days of precipitation totals that were between 25 and 50 percent of normal. Daytime temperatures were an average of 2 to 5 degrees above normal during the period, and the number of hours of daylight per day were the highest of the year, both of which maximized evapotranspiration. These conditions contributed to a rapid decrease in streamflows, groundwater and soil moisture in this region, where observed values for each had fallen below the 10th percentile by the middle of July. The drought occurred at a critical time for crop growth, severely impacting corn and hay production among other crops. Ranchers reported most pasture grasses had wilted and gone dormant due to the dry conditions, forcing ranchers to begin feeding hay to their livestock.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1203004. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.