Drought declaration signed as dry conditions continue.
With Stutsman County Commission Chairman Mark Klose signing a drought emergency declaration Tuesday, the county may benefit from assistance from federal government agencies in the future.
Kim Franklin, Stutsman County assistant emergency manager, said Wednesday state of North Dakota officials asked all counties that are having issues due to dry weather conditions and considering enacting a drought emergency declaration to go ahead and do so by the end of this week.
What the declaration means for Stutsman County is raising awareness that drought conditions exist in the county and help may be needed in the future, Franklin said.
She said drought conditions have been building in Stutsman County since the spring.
"When the new drought map comes out Thursday (today) we (Stutsman County) will probably be more in the red."
The July 18 map showed Stutsman County in either moderate drought range or severe drought range.
In a press release issued Tuesday, Jerry Bergquist, Stutsman County emergency manager, said since early spring Stutsman County has experienced very limited rainfall with some areas of the county approaching 6 inches of below-average precipitation for the year.
Bergquist included in his press release an aerial photo of a brush fire, which burned 170 acres, that the Medina Fire Department fought on Saturday afternoon.
He said the fire was started through normal haying operations.