Even with reservoirs at full capacity, some parts of the state are still facing major drought conditions.
Across North Carolina, 28 counties are considered to be in extreme drought, 18 are in a severe drought and nine are in a moderate drought. 21 other counties, including Orange, are said to be abnormally dry.
Even though many counties are facing extreme drought conditions, many North Carolinians aren't sure about how severely the state is being affected.
Gwen Smith, a technical assistant at Davis Library, said the recent rainfall could be why there's confusion.
"People think that since we had some rain the lakes are replenished and so they don't have to think about the water table," she said.
Brian Long, spokesman for the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, said that farmers are being heavily affected by the drought and that officials fear that the state will be right back where it was a year ago if the dry spell continues.
"It could be devastating to farmers across the state," he said.
Long also said that farmers are taking measures to reduce the impact they will feel from the drought by setting up irrigation systems to combat the lack of rain and also by re-evaluating the size of their herds.
"Some cattle are being taken to the market earlier or farmers are taking more cattle than they usually would, so that they aren't looking at the prospect of having more animals going into the fall and winter," Long said.
UNC senior Rebecca Yoder said she thinks that people aren't as aware about the drought because they tend to be concerned with what's going on in their part of the state, which can signal ignorance of the "bigger picture."
Woody Yonts, chair of the Drought Management Advisory Council, warned that even though reservoirs in most of North Carolina are full, abnormally high temperatures and a rainfall deficit may cause a reappearance of the drought, even in counties not currently experiencing a severe drought.
"We want to make sure they're following very prudent means when using water," he said.
"We should be using less water in our houses even when there isn't a drought to be better prepared for these situations," Yonts said.
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
