Drought in Randolph County, WV: 0.8 years in 10 since 2000

0.8 years in 10

Randolph County, WV: 2 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. Less drought-prone than most US counties.

20002025

Drought years: 2002 (14 wk) and 2024 (23 wk). Not a single drought week in 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2022.

A regular lawn is fine here; plan for the odd dry year

Real droughts are rare here. A smart controller that skips watering after rain covers the odd dry year.

You can keep a regular lawn. Worth doing: a rain-sensing or smart controller, and deeper, less frequent watering if Sep turns dry.

Against the rest of WV

35th most drought-prone of 55 WV counties; the WV middle is 0.8 in 10. Closest on the list: Preston County (0.8 in 10) and Wetzel County (0.8 in 10). Driest in WV: Mercer County (2.3 in 10). Least drought: Hancock County (0.4 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Sep (10% of weeks), then Oct (8%) and Nov (8%). Least in Jan (0%). May to September averages 5%.

0 Jan
3 Feb
3 Mar
6 Apr
4 May
3 Jun
4 Jul
7 Aug
10 Sep
8 Oct
8 Nov
1 Dec

The worst year: 2024

2024: 23 weeks in drought, peaking at D4 exceptional. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 4.7% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 3% at D2, 0.5% at D3, 1 weeks with some of the county in D4. Longest unbroken spell: 23 weeks, Jun 25, 2024 to Nov 26, 2024.

Lately

Last drought year: 2024, 23 weeks. 2016-2025: 1 in 10, against 0.6 in 10 for 2000-2015, about the same. So far in 2026: 7 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.