Due to the extreme demand for propane, an emergency declaration is being issued for Iowa and several other Midwestern states by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Deb Grooms, C-E-O of the Iowa Propane Gas Association, says part of the problem is that farmers across the region are trying to complete their harvest at the same time.

The emergency declaration means truckers hauling the propane don’t have to count the time they sit in line at a terminal against the hours they’re on the road transporting it. Grooms says the urgent situation has prompted a cooperative spirit.

The other states covered under the declaration are Illinois, Missouri, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Nebraska and South Dakota. Grooms says some farmers have volunteered to delay drying their corn so deliveries can be made to homeowners and livestock producers who depend on the propane to keep themselves and their animals warm.