Hurricane Isaac Doesn't Live Up To Expectations

 
Talk about a disappointment, moisture wise, for Georgia.

Hurricane Isaac didn't behave the way weather forecasters at UGA expected him to. Instead of parking over Georgia and raining like crazy, Isaac sashayed westward, where the ground is saturated, giving Athens only a tad of what was needed.

Forecasters thought this latest hurricane could significantly reduce Georgia's drought, but that's not likely to happen. According to a UGA press release, the state has seen little relief.

 “We thought it would park over Georgia, and we would get a few days of rain, which could have wiped out the drought,” said Pam Knox, an agricultural climatologist with University of Georgia Cooperative Extension. “Instead, it moved further to the west than we thought. They’re getting way more than they need, and we really haven’t gotten very much.”

Regular afternoon showers have picked up in some parts of Georgia, but about  half the state is still having some level of drought, with a wide swath across middle Georgia the area hardest hit.

“Every bit of rain we get is good, but it wasn’t enough to really change the drought situation. … Some areas probably got a little drought relief, but it was spotty,” Knox said. “In the summer we really need about an inch a week to keep up with evaporation; and, even with the storm, some areas haven’t gotten that.”

Don't give up: there is a small chance that Georgia could see more precipitation related to the system as it pushes waves of moist air northward. Cloud cover generated by this moisture should keep temperatures cooler than normal for the next few days.