In spite of all of our dry weather, I have not seen any stories about problems with water supply up until today. The big reservoirs that supply Atlanta are down somewhat but still have plenty of water since the drought has been relatively short-lived so far. But cities that have smaller reservoirs or that depend on stream flow are more vulnerable to water supply issues because either their reservoir or the stream that they use for water can drop below their intake tubes.

Today I saw the first story about potential water supply issues for Villa Rica, a city in the exurbs of Atlanta about 30 miles west of downtown Atlanta. I have also heard that Griffin, another city south of Atlanta that has had water supply issues in previous severe droughts, is having trouble as well. Fortunately, today we are getting some rain, although the amounts are far below what are needed to end the drought. But the change in weather patterns could lead to more rain this week and next, so we can hope for some improvement in the drought conditions in the areas that are getting wet. You can read the story at https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/metro-atlanta-city-just-weeks-away-from-running-out-of-water-officials-say/996402797. Note that the story makes it clear that they do have other places to turn to if their reservoir gets too low, so there is not a big crisis here so far.

Villa Rica reservoir 2019. Source: WSB-TV.