Farmers, Ranchers Asked To Take Extra Care During Harvest

(AP) - The South Dakota Division of Wildland Fire Suppression is asking ranchers and farmers during the harvest season to take extra precautions to prevent wildfires.

Officials say dry fuel conditions combined with the warm and windy weather is making conditions ripe for fast-moving prairie fires.

State Wildland Fire Division Director Jay Esperance advises farmers to have a disk in the field, locate nearby water tanks and blow chaff off combines to minimize the potential for fires.

The West River counties of Lawrence, Butte, Pennington, Meade, Custer, Harding, Perkins and Fall River are experiencing high to very high fire danger.