Extreme drought conditions are spreading in South Georgia and North Florida, according to the most recent release of the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Georgia’s driest area remains in the southern part of the state. Extreme conditions start in Seminole and Decatur counties, spread eastward to Lowndes and Echols counties and then northeastward to Liberty, Bryan and Chatham counties. All of the remaining areas in southern and central Georgia are observing severe drought conditions.
Parts of Harris, Muscogee and Chattahoochee counties in west Georgia are extremely dry, as are Wilkes, Oglethorpe, Madison and Elbert counties in Northeast Georgia. The remaining areas in the state are either moderately dry or abnormally dry.
Extreme conditions in Florida start in the Panhandle in Jackson and Calhoun counties, spread eastward to Columbia and Baker counties and then southward to Levy and Marion counties. Most of the remaining areas in North Florida are experiencing severe drought. Extreme conditions in Southwest Florida are seen in parts or all of Hillsborough, Manatee, Hardee, Highlands, DeSoto, Sarasota, Charlotte and Glades counties.
The driest area in Alabama is in the southeast corner of the state. Severe drought is seen in Houston and Geneva counties. It stretches westward to Escambia, Conecuh and Monroe counties and then northward to Elmore, Tallapoosa and Chambers counties. Extreme conditions are also seen in Macon, Russell and Lee counties along the Alabama-Georgia state line.
Moderate drought and abnormal drought are observed in the central and southwest corner of Alabama and in the northern part of the state.