South Carolina Current Drought Status

State Climate Office                 803-734-9100
NEWS RELEASE          DNR News 803-734-3815
October 16, 2009

DROUGHT DECLARATION REMOVED FOR 12 S.C. COUNTIES

South Carolina Drought Map for October 16, 2009

For previously issued drought statements see the archived status reports.

Table of all counties and drought status.
Drought Response Committee Meeting Sign-In sheet.

Discussion:

Another round of soaking rain this week (Oct. 12-Oct. 16) led the S. C. Department of Natural Resources to downgrade the incipient declaration to no drought status for 12 Piedmont and Central Savannah counties. The state agency members of the Drought Response Committee voted on Oct. 16 to remove Greenville, Spartanburg, Cherokee, Union, Laurens, Newberry, Anderson, Abbeville, Greenwood, McCormick, Edgefield and Saluda counties from any drought status.

The committee also decided the rainfall was not sufficient to remove the declaration for the Catawba Wateree Basin (York, Chester, Fairfield, Lancaster, and Kershaw) and several counties in the upper part of the Pee Dee (Chesterfield, Marlboro, and Dillon).

Darlington County was added to the list of counties in incipient drought.

According to Hope Mizzell, S.C. State Climatologist, the counties maintained at incipient received beneficial rain this week, but not enough to shift several key drought indices out of drought.

30-Day (Sept. 16 to Oct. 15) rainfall totals for counties removed from drought by monitoring station:

AIKEN - 8.41
ANDERSON - 10.26
CALHOUN FALLS - 11.50
CLINTON - 6.54
COLUMBIA METRO - 9.27
GREENVILLE/SPARTANBURG - 7.54
JOHNSTON - 6.33
LAURENS - 5.53
MCCORMICK - 8.52
NEWBERRY - 11.08
SALUDA - 6.07
SANTUCK (Union County) - 5.28

30-Day (Sept. 16 to Oct. 15) rainfall totals for counties maintained in incipient by monitoring station:(Including Darlington County which was upgraded to incipient)

CHESTER - 3.82
CHESTERFIELD - 4.03
DARLINGTON - 3.51
DILLON - 2.83
PAGELAND - 3.65
WINNSBORO - 3.88
YORK - 4.46

Contact South Carolina State Climatologist Dr.Hope Mizzell in Columbia at (803) 734-9568 or e-mail at mizzellh@dnr.sc.gov for more information.

South Carolina's natural resources are essential for economic development and contribute nearly $30 billion and 230,000 jobs to the state's economy overall. Find out why "Life's Better Outdoors" at: www.dnr.sc.gov/economic/index.html.

Drought Status Table

Current Drought Status by County
Normal Incipient Moderate Severe Extreme
County
Status
County
Status
County
Status
County
Status
County
Status
ABBEVILLE
Normal
AIKEN
Normal
ALLENDALE
Normal
ANDERSON
Normal
BAMBERG
Normal
BARNWELL
Normal
BEAUFORT
Normal
BERKELEY
Normal
CALHOUN
Normal
CHARLESTON
Normal
CHEROKEE
Normal
CHESTER
Incipient
CHESTERFIELD
Incipient
CLARENDON
Normal
COLLETON
Normal
DARLINGTON
Incipient
DILLON
Incipient
DORCHESTER
Normal
EDGEFIELD
Normal
FAIRFIELD
Incipient
FLORENCE
Normal
GEORGETOWN
Normal
GREENVILLE
Normal
GREENWOOD
Normal
HAMPTON
Normal
HORRY
Normal
JASPER
Normal
KERSHAW
Incipient
LANCASTER
Incipient
LAURENS
Normal
LEE
Normal
LEXINGTON
Normal
MARION
Normal
MARLBORO
Incipient
MCCORMICK
Normal
NEWBERRY
Normal
OCONEE
Normal
ORANGEBURG
Normal
PICKENS
Normal
RICHLAND
Normal
SALUDA
Normal
SPARTANBURG
Normal
SUMTER
Normal
UNION
Normal
WILLIAMSBURG
Normal
YORK
Incipient


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SC Drought Response Committee Meeting, October 16, 2009
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Find out more about the State Climatology Office at https://www.dnr.sc.gov/climate/sco/ or by calling (803) 734-9100.