Faced with a lack of rainfall and increased fire danger due to the extended drought, the Allen Parish Police Jury and surrounding municipalities are urging residents to voluntarily conserve water.

Allen Parish Police Jury President Tony Hebert said Monday said the conservation is a precaution and urged residents to be mindful of water usage.

“It’s voluntarily right now because the drought is serious,” Hebert said. “Our concern right now is that we will get short on water and when water is short we lose our fire protection.”

He said the dry weather has prompted grass and wildfires in the area, leading to the lost of a home and a camp last week.

“If we lose our water we will be in a bind,” he said. “We need water to fight fires and if it’s low there is a concern that we won’t have the water or the pressure to fight the fires.”

He said many people are watering the grass and running water to keep their roofs cool.

Hebert said he does not remember anything this drastic in the last 60 years.

“We’ve had hot weather in the past, but I don’t remember it lasting this long,” he said. “And I don’t see any relief in the next 14 days, which means things could really get bad.”

Many water systems across the parish are having to work overtime due to the extreme drought.

Kinder Mayor Wayland Lafargue said the Southwest Allen Parish Water District, which serves the town, is calling an emergency conservation for the entire system. Due to the drought and amount of fires, the water supply is running low and unable to keep up with the demand firefighters need.

“If the water supply gets too low, there will be no fire suppression,” he said.

Lafargue said there is not a problem with the town’s current water level, but residents are being asked to conserve water to help maintain the maximum volume of water during the drought.

“We are just asking people because of the fires that are breaking out, we need to be prepared down the road,” he said.

He said several fires have occurred outside the town limits, which has officials concerned.

“We need some rain because the heat has been unbelievable” he said.

Oakdale Mayor Gene Paul said the city’s water level is currently safe, but if there is no rainfall soon, water levels could be critical, especially if there is a major fire and not enough water to put it out.

“We are always concerned about water, but right now our water level is good,” Paul said. “If the drought continues, it will be a major concern.”

Paul said the area has seen an increase in fires in the surrounding area and the Oakdale Fire Department has assisted fighting many of those fires.

Residents are asked to monitor their water usage and conserve whenever possible.

Residents are urged to water grass, shrubs and gardens every other day to conserve water and not leave sprinkler systems running for long periods of time. Residents can also reduce water waste by running washing machines and dishwashers when they are full and use cold water to reduce the amount of energy.