Adair and Guthrie County Emergency Management has issued a burn ban for both counties effective at noon Friday.

This burn ban comes as all of Guthrie County and the northwest portion of Adair County is experiencing extreme drought. The southwest to northeast midsection of Adair County is under severe drought, while the southeast corner is experiencing moderate to abnormally dry conditions. A burn ban was already issued for the City of Stuart earlier this week, and the City of Casey has been under a water conservation alert since August 3rd.

Mayor Nicholas Lindberg states that the City’s water tower has not been maintaining normal water levels, and if the level continues to fall, they will be forced to order citywide overnight shutoffs to prevent the tower from depleting, which would also lead to a boil advisory. While the public works staff is working with state agencies to do everything they can to address this issue, it is still critical that residents do what they can to help conserve water. Some ways include not washing vehicles, siding, or driveways; only doing laundry when you have a full load, turning the water off when brushing your teeth, buying bottled water to drink, and using disposable plates and utensils instead of washables.