Twenty-eight Alabama counties have been placed under a drought emergency.
The Alabama Drought Declaration issued yesterday comes after conditions across the state continue to degrade due to little rainfall and higher-than-normal temperatures.
The counties now under emergency status are mostly in the northern and eastern half of the state. The Shoals region, Huntsville and the Birmingham metro area are all affected.
All counties currently under emergency status are:
Region 1: Colbert, DeKalb, Franklin, Jackson, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Marshall and Morgan
Region 3: Blount, Cherokee, Cullman, Etowah, Jefferson, Shelby, St. Clair, Walker and Winston
Region 4: Calhoun, Chambers, Chilton, Clay, Cleburne, Coosa, Randolph, Talladega and Tallapoosa
Alabama Office of Water Resources' Water Management Unit manager Tom Littlepage says falling reservoir and groundwater levels also indicate drought conditions are becoming more severe, especially in north, east and central Alabama.
Local water managers are being urged to monitor water sources and implement conservation measures as needed.