By Clint Thompson
Drought conditions did not improve over the past week. In fact, conditions only worsened across most of the Southeast region, according to the March 26 release of the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Florida
The driest part of Florida remains in the northern and southern regions of the state. Exceptional drought has expanded in North Florida to include Calhoun, Liberty, Gadsden, Leon, Jefferson, Madison, Taylor, Lafayette, Suwanee, Hamilton, Columbia, Union and Gilchrist counties. Extreme drought is observed in the Florida Panhandle, starting in Walton and Holmes counties, stretching eastward to the coast and as far south as Citrus and Volusia counties.
South Florida’s extreme drought conditions expand from Monroe and Miami-Dade counties northward to Hillsborough, Polk, Indian River and Brevard counties. The rest of the state is either observing moderate drought or severe drought conditions.
Georgia
South Georgia remains hardest hit by drought, with exceptional drought also expanding in the region. Those conditions are observed in Decatur, Grady, Thomas, Brooks, Lowndes, Echols, Clinch, Lanier, Berrien, Atkinson, Irwin, Coffee, Jeff Davis, Telfair, Bacon, Ben Hill and Ware counties. Extreme drought covers most of southern Georgia, expanding from Seminole and Early counties in the southwest corner of the state, eastward to Chatham and Effingham counties and as far north as Treutlen and Emanuel counties.
Extreme drought is also observed in west Georgia and in a few counties in Northeast Georgia. The rest of the state is experiencing anywhere from abnormally dry to severe dry conditions.
Alabama
Extreme drought is seen in a few small areas in Alabama; one in the southeastern corner of the state in Houston County. Another is seen a few counties over to the west in parts of Covington, Escambia, Conecuh, Monroe, Butler and Wilcox counties. An area that includes Lee, Macon, Tallapoosa and Chambers counties in the eastern part of the state is also seeing extreme drought conditions.
Southeast Alabama is mostly experiencing severe drought conditions that expand as far west as Monroe and Wilcox counties and as far north as Elmore, Tallapoosa and Chambers counties. A small area in north-central Alabama has sufficient moisture.