WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — More than two dozen counties have been added to the Kansas drought emergency list. And other counties that were just in a drought watch have been added to the drought warning list.
The first map shows the emergency, warnings and watches from June. The second map is updated with the changes.
The new drought declaration has 67 counties in emergency status, 11 in warning status and 27 in watch status. Connie Owen, Kansas Water Office director and chair of the Governor’s Drought Response Team, recommended the action, and Governor Laura Kelly signed the order.
It authorizes all agencies under the jurisdiction of the governor to implement the appropriate drought response actions assigned in the Operations Plan of the Governor’s Drought Response Team.
Counties in the emergency stage are eligible for emergency use of water from certain state fishing lakes. These counties also become eligible for water in some federal reservoirs. However, individuals and communities need to contact the Kansas Water Office before taking water from the lakes.
Kansas October drought over the years
KWO says the outlooks from now through December favor above-normal temperatures and below-normal precipitation for nearly all portions of Kansas, meaning drought conditions could persist and expand over the next several months.
The Governor’s Drought Response Team will continue to watch the situation closely and work to minimize the negative drought-induced effects on Kansans.
For more detailed information about current conditions, visit the Climate and Drought webpage on the Kansas Water Office website at kwo.ks.gov.
County Drought Stage Declarations:
Drought Emergency: Allen, Barber, Barton, Bourbon, Butler, Chautauqua, Cherokee, Cheyenne, Clark, Comanche, Cowley, Crawford, Decatur, Edwards, Elk, Ellis, Ellsworth, Finney, Ford, Gove, Graham, Grant, Gray, Greeley, Greenwood, Hamilton, Harper, Harvey, Haskell, Hodgeman, Kearny, Kingman, Kiowa, Labette, Lane, Logan, McPherson, Meade, Montgomery, Morton, Neosho, Ness, Norton, Pawnee, Phillips, Pratt, Rawlins, Reno, Rice, Rooks, Rush, Russell, Scott, Sedgwick, Seward, Sheridan, Sherman, Stafford, Stanton, Stevens, Sumner, Thomas, Trego, Wallace, Wichita, Wilson, and Woodson.
Drought Warning: Anderson, Chase, Coffey, Lincoln, Linn, Lyon, Marion, Morris, Osborne, Saline and Smith.
Drought Watch: Atchison, Brown, Clay, Cloud, Dickinson, Doniphan, Douglas, Franklin, Geary, Jackson, Jefferson, Jewell, Johnson, Leavenworth, Marshall, Miami, Mitchell, Nemaha, Osage, Ottawa, Pottawatomie, Republic, Riley, Shawnee, Wabaunsee, Washington, and Wyandotte.
