The study was carried out to investigate the development of a stress-strain state in a thin porous plate subjected to intensive drying. A narrow evaporation zone (an evaporation front) divides the plate into two regions with different structures and rheological behavior. The complete saturation area is described by Kelvin-Voigt's viscoelastic model, and the dry area, by Hooke's elasticity law. Shrinkage is suggested to be a function of the evaporation zone velocity. The influence of variable shrinkage on the stress distribution across the plate is studied.