The rain from Beryl is a welcomed sight in parched south Georgia.
It's been raining off and on all day in some cities in the eastern part of our viewing area.
Lowndes County has been preparing for a few days for the tropical storm to give them a lot of rain.
They have had crews on alert for possible flooding ever since the weather service warned the area. But, they are actually hoping for more rain.
The phrases tropical storm or tropical depression can be scary to some people, but Valdosta residents are hoping that Beryl can hang around for a while.
"South Georgia has been in a drought for quite some time now," said Lowndes County Public Information Officer Paige Dukes. "This, of course, is something that is welcome by our farmers. As long as we don't get any more wind than this and we continue with these gentle downpours coming in and out, it's a great asset for us."
The wind was even more obvious than the rain throughout Monday. People, though, are thankful for every single drop. For many of them, it is an answered prayer.
"We are very appreciative," said Michael Moon with Tractor Supply. "As a matter of fact, at church last night, we were talking about the weather. We need a lot of rain. We are hoping this tropical storm will settle over us for a few days."
The weather did not stop drivers from getting out of the roads. Authorities say the rain is definitely good, but it is a gentle reminder for what is possible in the future.
"We are in good shape here and the really positive thing is that this is a small event very early in the season," Dukes said. "June 1st does kick off hurricane season. This is just a reminder of what we can experience here in South Georgia."
The team at tractor supply in Valdosta says Beryl has brought a relief to an early heat wave too. The rain is highly coveted by their customers.
"It has been a really short winter and it seems like summer hit us pretty early," Moon said. "We haven't had much rain and farmers have been needing it a lot."
The rain is sporadic. All day long, it is common to see a blue sky right beside a dark cloud.
Everybody we spoke with says they want more and more rain to set it. They are not worried about roads and flooding at all. They say it would take much more rain for that to happen.
Emergency responders say they haven't gotten any storm-related 911 calls and there have been no reports of power outages in Lowndes County.
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