By Scott Harvey
Bonham – Fannin County Commissioners voted Monday morning to enact a burn ban, adding to the record number of counties statewide to be placed under the restriction. The ban went into effect Monday.
Just last week, Delta County also established a burn ban, which went into effect July 5. Those violating that ban will be charged with a Class C misdemeanor which carries a maximum fee of $500.
According to the Keetch-Byram Drought Index, the region is slowly moving up on the fire danger scale, from "high" to "very high." As the danger rises, more Northeast Texas counties are following the trend set by virtually of all West and Southeast Texas.
And the triple digit heat isn't helping. The National Weather Service reported Monday that the Dallas-area was expected to top the 100 degree mark for the 10th consecutive day.
Collin, Franklin, Kaufman, Wood and Van Zandt counties were also under bans as of Monday afternoon.