By Brad Kellar
– The drought and fire danger continues to increase in the region.
As of Tuesday, the only area county under a burn ban was Kaufman County. But area fire departments are asking residents to take precautions to lessen their risk of becoming a fire victim.
Rains and Hunt counties continue to rank as the driest in the state. Through Tuesday, Rains County had an average reading of 698 on the Keetch-Byram Drought Severity Index. 800 is the highest possible reading. Hunt County had an average reading of 695 on the index.