The passage of multiple low pressure systems near the Carolinas during the month of December brought abundant precipitation to northwest North Carolina, most of which fell as rain.  Liquid precipitation totals varied generally from 4.5 inches to 6.5 inches for most of the northwest portion of the state, with a few totals reaching in excess of 9 inches along the crest of the Blue Ridge from Watauga County into Alleghany County.  These precipitation totals were anywhere from 150 percent to over 200 percent of normal for December, making for vast improvements in local stream flows, ground water levels and soil moisture from their peak dryness in mid-November.  As such, where Severe Drought conditions were in place across the entire northwest portion of the state at the beginning of the month, conditions improved to Moderate Drought by the end of December for areas along and west of the Blue Ridge, and to a combination of Moderate Drought and Abnormally Dry conditions across the foothills of the Blue Ridge and the Piedmont.

Drought in ALLEGHANY, NORTH CAROLINA
From 01-DEC-23 00:00:00 to 11-DEC-23 23:59:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Drought Monitor

Severe Drought conditions already in place for all of Alleghany County at the beginning of the month, persisted until December 12th, when two low pressure systems passing across the lower Mid-Atlantic during the week of December 3rd to the 10th brought rainfall amounts ranging from 2.00 to 2.25 inches to the county. This precipitation resulted in a significant increase in soil moisture, surface stream flows, and ground water levels sufficient to allow drought conditions to be improved to Moderate Drought per the U.S. Drought Monitor.  The precipitation moistened leaf litter and other fuels that support wildland fire activity, and a noted decrease in wildfires after these precipitation events was noted by the North Carolina Department of Forestry.  Additional rainfall in excess of four inches in spots resulted in removal of drought for nearly all of the county, with improvement to Abnormally Dry conditions through the remainder of the month.  There was no reported impacts to agriculture in December, with some farmers reporting that the lack of soggy ground make work in the fields easier to accomplish.

Drought in ASHE, NORTH CAROLINA
From 01-DEC-23 00:00:00 to 11-DEC-23 23:59:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Drought Monitor

Severe Drought conditions already in place at the beginning of the month for all of Ashe County persisted until December 12th, when two low pressure systems passing across the lower Mid-Atlantic during the week of December 3rd to the 10th brought rainfall amounts ranging from 1.50 to 2.50 inches to the county. This precipitation resulted in a significant increase in soil moisture, surface stream flows, and ground water levels sufficient to allow drought conditions to be improved to Moderate Drought per the U.S. Drought Monitor.  The precipitation also moistened leaf litter and other fuels that support wildland fire activity, and a noted decrease in wildfires after these precipitation events was noted by the North Carolina Department of Forestry.  There was no reported impacts to agriculture in December, with some farmers reporting that the lack of soggy ground make work in the fields easier to accomplish.

Drought in CASWELL, NORTH CAROLINA
From 01-DEC-23 00:00:00 to 11-DEC-23 23:59:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Drought Monitor

Severe Drought conditions already in place at the beginning of the month for all of Caswell County persisted until December 12th, when two low pressure systems passing across the lower Mid-Atlantic during the period of December 3rd to the 10th brought rainfall amounts ranging from 2.00 to 2.50 inches to the county. This precipitation resulted in a significant increase in soil moisture, surface stream flows, and ground water levels sufficient to allow drought conditions for the entire county to be improved to Moderate Drought per the U.S. Drought Monitor.  Additional precipitation of nearly two inches on December 18th resulted in removal of drought for nearly all of the county, and further improvement to Abnormally Dry conditions through the remainder of the month.  The precipitation moistened leaf litter and other fuels that support wildland fire activity, and a noted decrease in wildfires after these precipitation events was noted by the North Carolina Department of Forestry.  There was no reported impacts to agriculture in December, with some farmers reporting that the lack of soggy ground make work in the fields easier to accomplish.

Drought in ROCKINGHAM, NORTH CAROLINA
From 01-DEC-23 00:00:00 to 11-DEC-23 23:59:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Drought Monitor

Severe Drought conditions already in place at the beginning of the month for all of Rockingham County persisted until December 12th, when two low pressure systems passing across the lower Mid-Atlantic during the period of December 3rd to the 10th brought rainfall amounts ranging from 1.75 to 2.25 inches to the county. This precipitation resulted in a significant increase in soil moisture, surface stream flows, and ground water levels sufficient to allow drought conditions for the entire county to be improved to Moderate Drought per the U.S. Drought Monitor. Additional precipitation of nearly two inches on December 17th-18th resulted in removal of drought for nearly all of the county, and further improvement to Abnormally Dry conditions through the remainder of the month. The precipitation moistened leaf litter and other fuels that support wildland fire activity, and a noted decrease in wildfires after these precipitation events was noted by the North Carolina Department of Forestry. There was no reported impacts to agriculture in December, with some farmers reporting that the lack of soggy ground make work in the fields easier to accomplish.

Drought in STOKES, NORTH CAROLINA
From 01-DEC-23 00:00:00 to 11-DEC-23 23:59:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Drought Monitor

Severe Drought conditions already in place at the beginning of the month for all of Stokes County persisted until December 12th, when two low pressure systems passing across the lower Mid-Atlantic during the period of December 3rd to the 10th brought rainfall amounts ranging from 1.75 to 2.5 inches to the county. This precipitation resulted in a significant increase in soil moisture, surface stream flows, and ground water levels sufficient to allow drought conditions for the entire county to be improved to Moderate Drought per the U.S. Drought Monitor. Additional precipitation of around 1.5 inches on December 17th-18th resulted in removal of drought for the eastern half of the county, making for improvement to Abnormally Dry conditions for this area through the remainder of the month. The precipitation also moistened leaf litter and other fuels that support wildland fire activity, and a noted decrease in wildfires after these precipitation events was noted by the North Carolina Department of Forestry. There was no reported impacts to agriculture in December, with some farmers reporting that the lack of soggy ground make work in the fields easier to accomplish.

Drought in SURRY, NORTH CAROLINA
From 01-DEC-23 00:00:00 to 11-DEC-23 23:59:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Drought Monitor

Severe Drought conditions already in place at the beginning of the month for all of Surry County persisted until December 12th, when two low pressure systems passing across the lower Mid-Atlantic during the period of December 3rd to the 10th brought rainfall amounts ranging from 1.75 to 2.25 inches to the county. This precipitation resulted in a significant increase in soil moisture, surface stream flows, and ground water levels sufficient to allow drought conditions for all but the southeast corner of the county to be improved to Moderate Drought per the U.S. Drought Monitor. Additional rounds of precipitation occurred through the remainder of the month, allowing for continued improvement each week.  By the end of the month, the eastern half of the county remained in a Moderate Drought status while the western half of Surry County experienced improvement to Abnormally Dry conditions as the county recorded monthly totals ranging from 5 inches to 7.5 inches. The precipitation also moistened leaf litter and other fuels that support wildland fire activity, and a noted decrease in wildfires after these precipitation events was noted by the North Carolina Department of Forestry. There was no reported impacts to agriculture in December, with some farmers reporting that the lack of soggy ground make work in the fields easier to accomplish.

Drought in WATAUGA, NORTH CAROLINA
From 01-DEC-23 00:00:00 to 11-DEC-23 23:59:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Drought Monitor

Severe Drought conditions already in place at the beginning of the month for all of Watauga County persisted until December 12th, when two low pressure systems passing across the lower Mid-Atlantic during the week of December 3rd to the 10th brought rainfall amounts ranging from 2.25 to 3.50 inches to the county. This precipitation resulted in a significant increase in soil moisture, surface stream flows, and ground water levels sufficient to allow drought conditions to be improved to Moderate Drought per the U.S. Drought Monitor.  Additional rounds of precipitation occurred through the remainder of the month, allowing for continued improvement each week. By the end of the month, the western two thirds of the county remained in a Moderate Drought status while the eastern third of Watauga County near the crest of the Blue Ridge experienced improvement to Abnormally Dry conditions as the county recorded monthly totals ranging from five inches in the west to over ten inches in the east.  The precipitation moistened leaf litter and other fuels that support wildland fire activity, and a noted decrease in wildfires after these precipitation events was noted by the North Carolina Department of Forestry. There was no reported impacts to agriculture in December, with some farmers reporting that the lack of soggy ground make work in the fields easier to accomplish.

Drought in WILKES, NORTH CAROLINA
From 01-DEC-23 00:00:00 to 20-DEC-23 23:59:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Drought Monitor

Severe Drought conditions already in place at the beginning of the month for all of Wilkes County persisted until December 12th for the northwest half of the county, when two low pressure systems passing across the lower Mid-Atlantic during the period of December 3rd to the 10th brought rainfall amounts ranging from 1.75 to locally nearly 3.5 inches. This allowed the northwest half of the county to improve to a Moderate Drought status, though the southeast half of the county remained in a Severe Drought status for two additional weeks. Another heavy rainfall event occurred on December 26th, bringing a full category improvement for Wilkes County, with Moderate Drought conditions designated for the southeast half of the county, while Abnormally dry conditions were declared for the northwest half. Total rainfall amounts across Wilkes County for December ranged from 5 inches in the east to around 10 inches near the crest of the Blue Ridge. The precipitation moistened leaf litter and other fuels that support wildland fire activity, and a noted decrease in wildfires after these precipitation events was noted by the North Carolina Department of Forestry. There was no reported impacts to agriculture in December, with some farmers reporting that the lack of soggy ground make work in the fields easier to accomplish.

Drought in YADKIN, NORTH CAROLINA
From 01-DEC-23 00:00:00 to 25-DEC-23 23:59:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Drought Monitor

Severe Drought conditions already in place at the beginning of the month for all of Yadkin County persisted until December 21st for the northeast two thirds of the county, when multiple low pressure systems passing across the lower Mid-Atlantic during the first half of the month brought rainfall amounts ranging from 1.75 to locally nearly 3.5 inches.  This allowed the northeast portion of the county to improve to a Moderate Drought status, though the southwest third of the county remained in a Severe Drought status for another week. Additional rainfall on the 26th removed any lingering Severe Drought conditions, leaving the entire county in Moderate Drought to finish out the month.  Overall, Yadkin County received rainfall totals ranging from 5.5 to around 7 inches for the month of December.  The precipitation moistened leaf litter and other fuels that support wildland fire activity, and a noted decrease in wildfires after these precipitation events was noted by the North Carolina Department of Forestry. There was no reported impacts to agriculture in December, with some farmers reporting that the lack of soggy ground make work in the fields easier to accomplish.