RALEIGH, N.C. — Drought now reaches across most of North Carolina, and forecasters see little rain on the way for at least another week.
This week’s U.S. Drought Monitor map, released Thursday, shows close to 60% of the state in drought, according to the National Weather Service office in Raleigh. Almost a quarter of North Carolina is in severe drought or worse.
Conditions are harshest in parts of the northern and eastern counties, where some areas have reached extreme drought. The mountains are the exception. Heavy rain from the remains of a tropical system soaked much of the high country and foothills recently, leaving the Asheville area and central mountains free of drought, though pockets of the far west are abnormally dry or in moderate drought.
The state Drought Management Advisory Council updated its advisory to reflect conditions as of Oct. 20. It asks water users in drought-affected areas to cut back on nonessential use so supplies remain for critical needs such as firefighting and public health, to put water shortage response plans into action, to fix leaks, and to look at reuse and alternative sources. In the hardest-hit areas, systems are urged to project their needs and supply 90 days out.
Dry leaves and grass also raise wildfire risk, even where drought has eased. A brush fire beside Interstate 40 near the Buncombe-Haywood county line on Wednesday backed up traffic for miles.
High pressure is expected to keep skies mostly clear through the weekend, with a dry cold front bringing cooler air and a chance of frost in some mountain valleys. Weather service forecasters in Raleigh see early signs of a pattern change around Nov. 2 to 4 that could finally bring meaningful rain.
Filed under: Raleigh NC Weather News
