Burn bans have been issued for 33 counties in Mississippi because of the dry conditions. That number is expected to continue rising until there is a long period of rain.
The fire danger was lessened in Thursday afternoon when the National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for central Rankin County.
Bill Kitchings, public outreach forester for the Mississippi Forestry Commission, says the burn bans cannot be lifted until we get a long hard rain.
There are a total of 16 state parks that are now under burn bans which have been declared by the counties in which they are located.
To see a map of all the counties in Mississippi currently under burn bans, go to the Mississippi Forestry Commission website.
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