The Monroe County Emergency Management Agency issued a burn ban effectively immediately until further notice due to continued extremely dry conditions.

Monroe County EMA Director Kevin Scheibe said this ban was issued in conjunction with all of the Monroe County fire chiefs.

“(The) Monroe County EMA has determined that due to the extremely dry conditions, any open burning constitutes a danger to life and properties,” the no burning order states.

The fire ban in Monroe County includes the following:

• No outdoor burning of any brush piles, leaves, branches, wood, trash, etc.

• No personal fireworks of any sort. No shooting of personal fireworks.

• No “sky lanterns” allowed to be ignited or released.

• No fires are allowed except for fire pits that have a safety containment fire ring AND a screen/protective top for the fire ring. All fire rings with screen/protective tops MUST always be supervised. Fire rings must be extinguished when unsupervised.

The EMA said municipalities and/or organizations that already have approved fireworks display permits for the upcoming July 4 holiday are allowed to continue with displays as long as there is fire department presence on site during the event.

“Sorry for the inconvenience during this time. We appreciate the community’s consideration and cooperation,” Scheibe said.

Anyone with questions about the burn ban may contact the Monroe County EMA at 618-939-8651, ext. 534, or by emailing kscheibe@monroecountyil.gov.

Early Monday evening, the Randolph County EMA issued a similar burn ban for that county until further notice.

According to data released Thursday by the U.S. Drought Monitor, most of Monroe County, all of Randolph County and the southern portion of St. Clair County are in a “severe drought.” Per the National Weather Service in St. Louis, Waterloo received just 1.27 inches of precipitation from June 1-26.

On a positive note, the weather service predicts an “above normal” rainfall outlook for this region over the next 6-10 days.