Last Updated on April 23, 2026 9:49 am

North Carolina's drought has intensified for the fifth straight week, with Extreme Drought expanding to 47 counties — nearly half the state. Five weeks ago, only 7 counties were at that level.

Watauga County has moved to Extreme Drought (D3) for the first time in this drought cycle. Avery and Caldwell counties also jumped to D3 this week, joining Wilkes County which moved to D3 two weeks ago. Ashe and Alleghany counties remain in Severe Drought (D2).

Seventeen counties moved to D3 this week, with the western mountains hit especially hard. Burke, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, and Yancey all moved to Extreme Drought, along with Catawba, Cleveland, Polk, and Rutherford in the foothills. In the Piedmont, Caswell, Franklin, Orange, Person, and Rockingham also reached D3.

The weekly update, put out by the North Carolina Drought Management Council, shows all 100 counties experiencing some level of drought, with only six counties in the far northeast remaining at Moderate Drought (D1).

Drought categories are based on streamflow, groundwater levels, the amount of water stored in reservoirs, soil moisture, the time of year, and other relevant factors for assessing the extent and severity of dry conditions.

D3 – Extreme Drought

  • Alexander

  • Anson

  • Avery

  • Buncombe

  • Burke

  • Cabarrus

  • Caldwell

  • Caswell

  • Catawba

  • Cherokee

  • Clay

  • Cleveland

  • Davie

  • Durham

  • Edgecombe

  • Franklin

  • Graham

  • Granville

  • Halifax

  • Haywood

  • Henderson

  • Iredell

  • Jackson

  • Macon

  • Madison

  • McDowell

  • Mecklenburg

  • Mitchell

  • Nash

  • Northampton

  • Orange

  • Person

  • Polk

  • Rockingham

  • Rowan

  • Rutherford

  • Scotland

  • Stanly

  • Swain

  • Transylvania

  • Union

  • Vance

  • Wake

  • Warren

  • Watauga

  • Wilkes

  • Yancey

Total: 47

D2 – Severe Drought

  • Alamance

  • Alleghany

  • Ashe

  • Beaufort

  • Bertie

  • Bladen

  • Brunswick

  • Carteret

  • Chatham

  • Columbus

  • Craven

  • Cumberland

  • Dare

  • Davidson

  • Duplin

  • Forsyth

  • Gaston

  • Greene

  • Guilford

  • Harnett

  • Hertford

  • Hoke

  • Hyde

  • Johnston

  • Jones

  • Lee

  • Lenoir

  • Lincoln

  • Martin

  • Montgomery

  • Moore

  • New Hanover

  • Onslow

  • Pamlico

  • Pender

  • Pitt

  • Randolph

  • Richmond

  • Robeson

  • Sampson

  • Stokes

  • Surry

  • Tyrrell

  • Washington

  • Wayne

  • Wilson

  • Yadkin

Total: 47

D1 – Moderate Drought

  • Camden

  • Chowan

  • Currituck

  • Gates

  • Pasquotank

  • Perquimans

Total: 6

Residents are strongly encouraged to continue water conservation efforts and stay informed about local drought conditions.

The post Drought Monitor Update — Thursday April 23, 2026 appeared first on WataugaOnline.com.

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