Rain might not save Atlanta from record

Rain might not save Atlanta from record

	Published : Mon, 31 Dec 2007 14:58 By : Agencies Print this Story

ATLANTA (AP) - Rain fell in the city for a fourth consecutive day Sunday, but meteorologists said it probably wouldn't be enough to save 2007 from going down as the drought-stricken Atlanta area's driest year on record.

The most arid year ever recorded for Atlanta was 1954, when only 31.80 inches of rain fell. As of 11 a.m. Sunday, the 2007 cumulative rainfall was 31.29 inches, and forecasters doubted that the necessary half-inch of rain would fall before the weather cleared.

'Right now it's just a wait and see,' said Stephen Konarik, a National Weather Service meteorologist. 'I think it (this year) is going to remain the driest, unless the weather gets a little heavier than what we are seeing.'

More than one-third of the Southeast is in an 'exceptional' drought -- the worst drought category. The Atlanta area, with a population of 5 million, is smack in the middle of the affected region, which includes most of Tennessee, Alabama, North and South Carolina, as well as parts of Kentucky and Virginia.

There had been hope that Atlanta would escape a record book entry this year, as a parade of rainstorms began the week before Christmas. Atlanta got rain on 10 out of the last 12 days.

On Saturday morning, the 2007 cumulative rainfall total hit about 30.5 inches, and an overnight soaking appeared to be on the way.

However, only 0.74 of an inch more had fallen by 11 a.m. Sunday, and the rainfall over northern Georgia tapered off during the day and was expected to dissipate by sunset, Konarik said.

Rainfall is measured at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, just south of the city.

Rain has also been unusually sparse in other Georgia cities this year, including Athens, Columbia and Macon. However, each of those cities has seen worse years than 2007, Konarik said.

The latest rain had only a small effect on the metropolitan area's main source of drinking water, Lake Lanier, where the receding water is exposing roads and the foundations of buildings submerged since the reservoir was created in the 1950s.

The water level in the reservoir stood at an all-time low of 1,050.79 inches on Wednesday, and by 6 a.m. Sunday it had risen to only 1,051.05 inches.

'What's falling now won't show up until tomorrow or the next day,' said Rob Holland, a spokesman for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which operates the reservoir.

'Anything that stops the level from falling is a good thing,' he added. 'But we'd like to get a whole lot more.'

The lack of rainfall across the region has set off intense fighting between Georgia, Florida and Alabama over the federal government's management of water in the region.

Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue has asked the federal government to release less water from its reservoirs, such as Lanier, but Alabama and Florida are concerned about how that would affect their supplies. Last month, Perdue held a public prayer vigil for rain on the steps of the Capitol.