FGUS74 KBMX 091436 RRA ESFBMX ALC001-005>011-015>021-027-029-037-047-051-055-057- 063-065-073-075-081-085>093-101-105>127-141200- HYDROLOGIC OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 930 AM CDT FRI MAY 9 2008 ...DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT FOR CENTRAL ALABAMA... SYNOPSIS... RAINFALL AMOUNTS DURING THE PAST WEEK WERE GENERALLY AVERAGE TO ABOVE AVERAGE. HOWEVER...THERE HAS BEEN LITTLE CHANGE IN THE DROUGHT SITUATION ACROSS CENTRAL ALABAMA. THE LATEST U.S. DROUGHT MONITOR INDICATES SEVERE TO EXTREME DROUGHT CONDITIONS NORTH AND EAST OF A LINE FROM NEAR HALEYVILLE TO GORDO TO UNIONTOWN TO LOWNDESBORO TO AUBURN. REMAINING AREAS TO THE SOUTH AND WEST ARE IN ABNORMALLY DRY TO MODERATE DROUGHT CONDITIONS. THE DROUGHT MONITOR CLASSIFIES DROUGHT WITHIN ONE OF THESE FIVE CATEGORIES: 1) ABNORMALLY DRY 2) MODERATE 3) SEVERE 4) EXTREME 5) EXCEPTIONAL RAINFALL AVERAGED ONE TO TWO INCHES DURING THE PAST WEEK ACROSS CENTRAL ALABAMA. FOR THIS YEAR...RAINFALL HAS AVERAGED FROM SEVENTEEN TO TWENTY FIVE INCHES. FOR THE MONTH OF MAY...AVERAGE RAINFALL IS FROM FOUR AND ONE QUARTER TO FOUR AND THREE QUARTER INCHES. SOME PRECIPITATION AMOUNTS FOR CENTRAL ALABAMA JANUARY 1ST THROUGH MAY 8TH: BIRMINGHAM 21.15 MONTGOMERY 16.81 ANNISTON 18.27 TUSCALOOSA 19.02 CALERA 24.40 TROY 19.45 AVERAGE PRECIPITATION EXPECTED AND DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL FROM JANUARY 1ST THROUGH MAY 8TH: BIRMINGHAM 21.71 DOWN 0.56 MONTGOMERY 22.32 DOWN 5.51 ANNISTON 22.41 DOWN 4.14 TUSCALOOSA 23.49 DOWN 4.47 AGRICULTURAL IMPACTS... SOIL MOISTURE PROFILES REMAIN NEAR AVERAGE FOR MOST LOCATIONS. HOWEVER...SUBSOIL CONDITIONS HAVE STILL NOT RECOVERED FROM THE EXCEPTIONAL DROUGHT OF LAST FALL AND SUMMER. SIGNIFICANT SPRINGTIME PLANTING CONTINUES WITH THE USDA REPORTING 95 PERCENT OF THE CORN CROP PLANTED. OVERALL...ALABAMA'S CORN CROP WAS IN GOOD TO EXCELLENT CONDITION. PASTURE CONDITIONS ALSO SHOWED SLIGHT IMPROVEMENT DURING THE PAST WEEK...AND THE WINTER WHEAT CROP REMAINED IN MOSTLY GOOD TO EXCELLENT CONDITION. OVERALL...CROP AND LIVESTOCK CONDITIONS ACROSS THE AREA WERE IN GOOD CONDITION. FIRE DANGER IMPACTS... GENERALLY SPEAKING...THE RISK FOR FIRE DANGERS IS CURRENTLY LOW ACROSS CENTRAL ALABAMA. KEETCH-BYRAM DROUGHT INDICES (KBDI) ARE CURRENTLY 100 OR LESS ACROSS MUCH OF CENTRAL ALABAMA...WITH VALUES BETWEEN 100 AND 170 IN WEST CENTRAL COUNTIES. VALUES ABOVE 500 INDICATE A SEVERE FIRE DANGER. THE ALABAMA FORESTRY COMMISSION REPORTS THAT NO COUNTIES ARE CURRENTLY UNDER A FIRE ALERT. HYDROLOGIC IMPACTS... STREAM FLOWS HAVE INCREASED OVER THE AREA ONCE AGAIN FOLLOWING THE RECENT RAINFALL...WITH THE MAJORITY OF THE REPORTING UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY STREAM GAGES CURRENTLY IN THE NORMAL TO ABOVE NORMAL RANGE. HOWEVER...WITH THE INCREASE IN THE DEMAND FOR WATER FROM GROWING VEGETATION...FREQUENT RAINS ARE STILL NEEDED TO HELP STREAM FLOWS REMAIN IN THE NORMAL RANGE. RESERVOIR LEVELS ARE REMAINING FAIRLY STEADY. MOST MAJOR RESERVOIRS HAVE NOW RETURNED TO NEAR NORMAL POOL LEVELS FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR. PERIODIC SUBSTANTIAL RAINFALL WILL NEED TO CONTINUE IN ORDER FOR THE MAJOR RESERVOIRS TO SUSTAIN THEIR CURRENT LEVELS THROUGH SUMMER. LISTED BELOW ARE TODAY'S LEVELS FOR SOME OF THE MAJOR RESERVOIRS ACROSS CENTRAL ALABAMA AND LAST WEEK'S LEVELS: RESERVOIR LEVEL FOR 05/09/2008 LEVEL FOR 05/01/2008 WEISS 563.8 563.9 NEELY HENRY 507.8 507.7 LOGAN MARTIN 464.9 464.8 LAY 395.9 395.9 MITCHELL 311.7 311.7 JORDAN 251.2 251.1 R.L. HARRIS 793.0 792.8 MARTIN 489.6 489.5 SMITH 509.9 509.8 BANKHEAD 254.6 254.7 HOLT 186.3 186.6 SOCIAL IMPACTS... SOME OF THE WATER RESTRICTIONS ACROSS CENTRAL ALABAMA HAVE BEEN LIFTED OVER THE PAST FEW WEEKS. THE NEAR AVERAGE RAINFALL CONDITIONS FROM LATE WINTER THROUGH EARLY SPRING HAVE ALLOWED SOME OF THE MAJOR CITY RESERVOIRS TO FILL TO CAPACITY. HOWEVER...THE THREAT OF WATER SHORTAGES FOR MUNICIPAL WATER SYSTEMS WILL PERSIST AS WE HEAD TOWARD THE SUMMER SEASON...ESPECIALLY IF BELOW NORMAL RAINFALL OCCURS OVER THE AREA. THE AMOUNT OF BENEFICIAL RAINFALL THAT OCCURS DURING THE REMAINDER OF SPRING WILL BE CRITICAL IN DETERMINING IF ADEQUATE WATER SUPPLIES ARE AVAILABLE FOR THE UPCOMING SUMMER IN AREA RESERVOIRS. OUTLOOK... A WARM FRONT MOVING NORTH ACROSS THE AREA SATURDAY AND A COLD FRONT APPROACHING THE AREA SATURDAY NIGHT WILL BRING CHANCES FOR RAINFALL ONCE AGAIN OVER THE WEEKEND. AT THIS TIME...RAINFALL OF AROUND HALF AN INCH...WITH LOCALLY GREATER AMOUNTS...APPEAR LIKELY WITH THESE WEATHER SYSTEMS. DRIER CONDITIONS WILL FOLLOW ON MONDAY INTO TUESDAY...WITH MORE RAIN CHANCES RETURNING BY WEDNESDAY OF NEXT WEEK AS THE NEXT WEATHER SYSTEM APPROACHES. THE MEDIUM RANGE FORECAST...FOR MAY 14TH THROUGH MAY 22ND...CALLS FOR BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES AND ABOVE NORMAL PRECIPITATION CHANCES. THE LONG RANGE OUTLOOK...FOR THE REMAINDER OF MAY THROUGH JULY...CALLS FOR NORMAL TEMPERATURES AND EQUAL CHANCES OF ABOVE NORMAL OR BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION. ...UPDATE STATEMENT... THE NEXT DROUGHT INFORMATION STATEMENT WILL BE ISSUED AROUND MAY 15TH...OR EARLIER IF SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN THE CURRENT DROUGHT SITUATION OCCUR. $$