Oct. 3--Even after a shot in the arm from the remnants of Hurricane Fay, Hamilton County still is in a drought -- and it's getting worse, according to a report from the U.S. Drought Monitor.

In the report issued Thursday, Hamilton, Rhea, Meigs, Marion and Franklin counties in Tennessee were recategorized from being in a moderate drought to being in a severe one, the third of five drought categories. The swath of Southeast Tennessee had been in the moderate category for September.

Northwest Georgia counties remain in the severe category, the same category they were in for most of September, according to the report.

"If it weren't for the hurricane, the deficit would be even higher," said Dr. Luigi Romolo, the regional climatologist at the Southern Regional Climate Center in Baton Rouge, La. "Since then, you've really only had an inch or two of rain."

Chattanooga has received 31.7 inches of rain this year, 10.18 inches below the normal year-to-date total, according to official statistics.

A heavy dose of rain from a storm will ease but not cure a drought, Dr. Romolo said.

"To eradicate drought, you need consistent rainfall over a period of time," he said.

He offered some hope for the fall and winter, saying cool-weather rains do more to replenish natural reserves because the water is not soaked up by plants or evaporation, as it is in the summer.

Tod Hyslop, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Morristown, Tenn., said October usually is Chattanooga's driest month of the year.

"It doesn't bode well," he said.

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