Lewis County Suffers from Extreme Drought

Lewis County has experienced very little rainfall the last several months, which has resulted in a devasting drought and sizzling heat wave throughout our community. In fact, just last week the U.S. Drought Monitor reported that Lewis County was the only county in the entire state of Tennessee that was 100% engulfed in “extreme” drought conditions.

This extreme weather is negatively impacting Lewis County in several different ways. First, it is affecting farmers, who are facing dry pastures, crops drying up, and difficulty getting adequate water to their livestock. Second, our community has many homesteaders and off-the-grid residents with miniature farms and gardens, and they are being negatively affected the same way.

Third, it’s affecting the wallets of commercial landscaping businesses, who haven’t had grass to mow in weeks. Facebook is full of comments on the matter. “I’ve never seen leaves fall so early in the year before,” and “Does anyone else have crunchy grass?”

Fourth, it’s affecting recreation and tourism on the Buffalo River, as the water level is so low right now you can’t kayak the river without dragging constantly on the rocks. Tourists hiking trails at the Natchez Trace this weekend did so to disappointing water levels. “Where are the waterfalls like in the pictures,” some kids were heard asking?

Fifth, Lewis County has thousands of residents living outside the city limits who rely on well water, and their water supply is being reduced by having very little rain. Sixth, the heat is affecting youth football, as several practices have been re-scheduled or cancelled due to the unsafe heat index.

“This is one of the worst droughts we’ve had in a while,” stated Lewis County Mayor, Jonah Keltner. “I want to encourage our residents to conserve their water usage, stay hydrated, check up on your family and friends, and keep an eye on your outdoor pets and livestock.”

The U.S. Drought Monitor is produced through a partnership between the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. To view their full report, visit their website at https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu