Alabama Forestry Commission: State Fire Danger Advisory is still in effect
With the cooler temperatures, you may be tempted to gather around a bonfire, but the Alabama Forestry Commission wants to remind you that the Fire Danger Advisory is still in effect.
The latest wildfire map shows more than two dozen burning across the state. The good news is all but one are now contained.
“Those all are directly weather driven, everybody knows it’s dry outside. We’ve had a lack of precipitation. October is the driest month in Alabama, so this is par for the course,” Balsie Butler of the Alabama Forestry Commission says.
Butler says the forestry commission monitors fire statistics around the clock. In the past couple of weeks, the number of wildfires has been increasing.
“And the number of fires that we had, we had a 370% increase in fires that we responded to, and a 430% increase in the acreage that was consumed by wildfires. So that is directly connected to the lack of precipitation that we’ve experienced throughout the state,” Butler said.
He says you should take precautions with any burning you do outdoors.
“Have water on site. If you’re going to have bonfires, see if you can get your local fire department or volunteer fire department to come out with a truck so that if you have some embers that burn, go up in the air, come down outside those containment lines, there is a fire department that can quickly extinguish those fires, or just have some water there or having some someone to look out for,” he said.
You should also review your local and state laws because you may need a permit to burn depending on the amount of acreage.
The Fire Danger Advisory will be in place until the state receives enough rain to help the issue.
