State officials have further restricted outdoor watering in light of the current drought.

Now residents and businesses with odd-numbered addresses can water only on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays from 12 midnight to 10 a.m. Even-numbered residences can water only on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, also between midnight and 10 a.m.

No outdoor watering is permitted on Fridays, according to the schedule.

The state has declared that Georgia is in the midst of a “level 2” drought. State Climatologist David Stooksbury noted that March is typically a “very wet month” for Georgia but this year March was quite dry.

“That’s one of the reasons we’re in trouble now,” Stooksbury said.

Under EPD rules, if state officials go to a level 3 drought, residents and businesses would only be allowed to water one day a week, either on Saturday or Sunday. If a level 4 drought is declared, all outdoor watering will be prohibited.

Fayette County Water System Director Tony Parrott said Fayette hasn’t had any problems with running low on water and he credited that in large part due to the state’s water restrictions.

Parrott said water system employees keep an eye out for watering violations and if any are spotted they go talk to the homeowner. On almost all such occasions, the problem is corrected on the spot, Parrott said.

For example, the most recent change in watering hours caused some people with automatic sprinkler systems to inadvertently violate the new rules, but all of those problems got fixed, Parrott said.

Parrott lauded customers for sticking to the water restrictions, saying there are only a few cases when problems have arisen.