Drought — Jackson, West Virginia

2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Jackson, West Virginia

Wider weather episode

October began with at least abnormally dry (D0) conditions touching every county in the state. The worst drought conditions (D3 to D4) covered portions of northern, western, and central West Virginia, while conditions gradually improved to the south and east. Only one county, McDowell, had no drought in half of the county, while D0 covered the other half.

Several systems brought cold fronts through the area during the month. However, the majority of the area only received a few hundredths of rain at a time, while pockets of an inch or more were infrequently observed. Multiple days of dry weather in between systems also prevented whatever precipitation that did fall from putting a significant dent in the drought. Climatologically speaking, October was an abnormally dry month with all six climate sites averaging precipitation amounts between one to three inches below normal. The climate sites at Beckley and Huntington both experienced their second driest October on record, while Charleston experienced the third driest October on record.

By the end of the month, the 'no drought' area in McDowell County had descended into the abnormally dry category, while the severe to exceptional drought spanning the bulk of the state remained relatively unchanged in coverage.

Impacts reported during the height of the drought included below normal stream flows, low water in wells and reservoirs, a shortage of hay, water hauling, and an increase in fire danger.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1215545. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.