The current drought in Georgia is taking the state on a route into virgin territory, according to the national weather service. (EARLIER STORY. POSTED THURSDAY: The part of Georgia that is now considered “extremely” dry expanded by 20 percent over the past week. That means that 63 percent of the state now falls into that category including all of northeast Georgia.)
“Georgia is facing its most significant drought since 2011–2012,” forecasters said in a Saturday advisory. ” We’ve officially entered record-breaking territory. The low rainfall amounts for the Sep 1–Apr 1 period have now set all-time records at Macon and Columbus, and the lowest in over 100 years at Atlanta. With little relief expected from this weekend’s rain, the trend remains concerning as we enter the warmer spring months.”
Highlights of advisory:
***RECORD INTENSITY: Georgia has reached its highest drought coverage and severity since it began in Fall 2025.
***HISTORIC CONTEXT: This is the state’s most significant drought since 2011-2012.
***RECHARGE FAILURE: The critical winter “recharge season” failed to put a dent in rainfall deficits. Macon and Columbus both have set new records for driest September 1 – April 1.
***RECOVERY NEEDS: The general rule-of-thumb is that 3 months of above normal rainfall is needed to end a drought. Weekly rainfall amounts of 1-1.5′′ are necessary to keep drought from worsening.