Georgia, 2002

Drought in Georgia, August 1 to 31, 2002

August 1 to 31, 2002 · NWS GSP · 6 events in 6 counties and zones

The effects of the long term drought continued to take their toll on water supplies in northeast Georgia communities in August. Many creeks and small streams reached their lowest levels in memory, while water levels on area lakes were as much as 10 feet below full pond.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 6 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
6

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS GSP wrote it up.

The effects of the long term drought continued to take their toll on water supplies in northeast Georgia communities in August. Many creeks and small streams reached their lowest levels in memory, while water levels on area lakes were as much as 10 feet below full pond. Mandatory water restrictions were imposed in some communities.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 31, 9:00 PM EST, 3 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 31, 9:00 PM EST, 3 hours before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
1000 PM EDT WED JUL 31 2002

CONVECTION CONTINUES TO DIE OUT OVER THE SOUTHERN PIEDMONT THIS
EVENING...AS THE REGION HAS BEEN THOROUGHLY WORKED OVER BY
CONVECTION NEAR THE SFC TROUGH AXIS AND ASSOCIATED WITH NORTHWARD
MOVING OUTFLOWS. SHOULD BE ABLE TO REMOVE POPS SHORTLY AS
STABILIZATION CONTINUES. A FEW ROGUE CELLS HAVE DEVELOPED LATE THIS
EVENING OVER THE INTERSTATE 40 CORRIDOR...AND LATEST RUC SHOWS SOME
WEAK VORTICITY ALOFT MOVING SOUTH OVER THE REGION EAST OF THE UPPER
RIDGE OVERNIGHT. FEATURES ARE HARD TO FIND ON WATER VAPOR...
HOWEVER...AND ANY COVERAGE SHOULD NOT BE WORTH MENTIONING. WILL THUS
REMOVE ALL POPS WITH UPCOMING UPDATE PACKAGE. WILL ALSO INSERT
PATCHY FOG MENTION IN SOAKED SOUTHERN PIEDMONT.

AXIS OF DRIER DEWPOINTS PERSIST ALONG INTERSTATE 85 NORTH AND WEST
OF THE CONVECTION...PROVIDING A LITTLE MORE ROOM FOR DOWNWARD
MOVEMENT OF TEMPS OVERNIGHT. AREAS RECEIVING CONSIDERABLE
PRECIPITATION ARE ALREADY AT OR NEAR FORECAST MINS. WILL GENERALLY
ADJUST MOST LOCATIONS DOWN A NOTCH OR SO...WITH THE EXCEPTION OF NRN
NC MTNS WHERE DEWPOINTS ARE RUNNING HIGHER THAN FORECAST.

FCSTID = 33
GSP   70  91  70  91 /  10  30  30  10
AND   70  91  70  91 /  10  30  30  10
CLT   70  92  71  92 /  10  30  30  10
HKY   68  89  66  88 /  10  20  20  10
AVL   63  84  62  82 /  10  30  20  10

.GSP...
GA...NONE.
NC...NONE.
SC...NONE.

HG

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

6 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Elbert

When
August 1, 12:00 AM EST to August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Elbert forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
34.117, -82.840 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Franklin

When
August 1, 12:00 AM EST to August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Franklin forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
34.375, -83.229 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Habersham

When
August 1, 12:00 AM EST to August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Habersham forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
34.631, -83.531 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Hart

When
August 1, 12:00 AM EST to August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Hart forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
34.351, -82.964 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Rabun

When
August 1, 12:00 AM EST to August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Rabun forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
34.882, -83.402 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Stephens

When
August 1, 12:00 AM EST to August 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Stephens forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
34.554, -83.293 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Drought
A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Georgia in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Georgia, August 2002

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5312794, 5312795, 5312796, 5312797, 5312798, 5312799.