© 2024 KMUW
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

New Order Declares 72 Kansas Counties Drought Free

Kansas Water Office

Recent rains have eased drought conditions in many areas in the state, leading Gov. Sam Brownback to update the Drought Declaration for Kansas counties.

For the past year, all 105 counties have either been in an emergency, warning or watch status for the drought.

Last summer, Sedgwick, Harvey and Butler counties were all in the emergency category, now they’ve all been removed.

The governor’s order declares 72 counties drought free. Thirty-three counties remain under a watch.

The Kansas Water Office recommended the action. Spokesperson Katie Patterson-Ingels says it will still take some areas years to recover.

“We are thankful for those historic rain events that we’ve been receiving, but honestly we just can’t take our eye off of drought planning and future mitigation," Patterson-Ingels says. "You know we are starting to enter those warmer dry months of the year and drought conditions can return very quickly.”

The governor’s Drought Response Team will continue to watch the situation closely and work to minimize the effects the drought still has on Kansans.

--

To contact KMUW News or to send in a news tip, reach us at news@kmuw.org.

Follow Carla Eckels on Twitter @Eckels

Carla Eckels is Director of Organizational Culture at KMUW. She produces and hosts the R&B and gospel show Soulsations and brings stories of race and culture to The Range with the monthly segment In the Mix. Carla was inducted into The Kansas African American Museum's Trailblazers Hall of Fame in 2020 for her work in broadcast/journalism.