Weeks of dry, hot weather have plunged the Deep South further into a drought that’s affecting more than 11 million people and threatening crops across the region, a new assessment showed Thursday. The latest report from U.S. Drought Monitor showed arid conditions worsening across a five-state area from Louisiana to South Carolina. Drought conditions extend into northern Florida and the southern Great Lakes region. Much of Texas and the Southwest also are too dry. Some areas have gone weeks without substantial rain. The National Weather Service said most places in Georgia and Alabama received below-normal rainfall in August, and temperatures for the month were as much as 3 degrees above average in Georgia.
Farmers say the dry weather is hurting their crops. The Agriculture Department said pastures, hayfields and soybean crops are drying up because of the drought, and some farmers have been feeding hay to livestock because of a lack of grass. Alabama has declared a statewide fire alert because of extremely dry weather.
Conditions are particularly bad in Alabama and Georgia, where nearly the entire state is too dry. Areas around the suburbs of Birmingham and Atlanta are particularly hard hit. The National Weather Service on Thursday reported record temperatures for several Alabama cities: Montgomery at 100 F (38 C); Troy at 98 (37 C), Tuscaloosa at 97 (36 C) and Birmingham and Anniston each at 96 (35.5 C).
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