This from the El Paso Times:
[County Judge Veronica] Escobar will move forward with a disaster declaration on Monday as drought conditions are expected to increase and temperatures will reach more than 100 degrees this weekend and are expected to get hotter nearing the Fourth of July, she said.
County Commissioners Court had until June 15 to ban the sale of aerial fireworks, but it could not do it because El Paso had not reached the needed Keetch-Byram Drought Index of 575. Anything above 575 is considered dangerous with the potential for forest fires or, in El Paso’s case, brush and grass fires, according to Texas A&M Forest Service.
Escobar said her staff has been monitoring the drought index every day and she expects the index to surpass 575 on Sunday.
All this week, the index has increased three points every day, she said. On Thursday, the index was at 568.
“That means we would definitely hit the lower level of the drought requirement by Sunday, and it’s only expected to increase over the next 14 days,” Escobar said.
El Paso County is in danger of brush and grass fires! No wonder we can’t attract industry.