In this hard news feature,”Cass Among Indiana Counties Still Dealing With Drought-Like Conditions,” by James D. Wolf on the Pharos Tribune, the author uses a mix of ethos and pathos to relay the unsettling effects the droughts have had on the environment. The author starts off by stating that the drought situation has improved in Cass County over the past two weeks thanks to the rain, but north central Indiana isn’t clear of dry lakes, dry crop weather, or the rare chance of bushfires. The author continues by stating that meteorologists have stated that the land has just begun to recover from the drought that occurred last June. They also stated that within the past three months, the area has only had about 79% of its normal precipitation. Meteorologists say that winter bought us time with all the snow and rain, but that we are running out of time. They also state that the ground needs to be resaturated, water tables need to be replenished, and that everytime it rains, the ground has absorbed it immediately. Wolf continues stating that Indiana is not the only state to face this problem. He states that a majority of the United States is looking at a below-average rainfall this year. The author starts to close out the article by stating that farmers haven’t been affected by the drought yet, but if they don’t get more rain soon it will cause trouble in the future. He continues by saying that lakes are still affected by the drought as water levels are decreasing. Wolf closes out the article by saying that for a short period of time, burn bans have taken place in some counties to help prevent fires from occuring. His final statement is a quote from Waltons Assistant Fire Chief stating that with the warm weather and rain, the drought should be over soon. My father used to work at a state park where they would often burn the grass during this time of the year to prevent wildfires due to the droughts that occur. I’m glad to see that with the rain, the drought should be over soon.