MADISON COUNTY, Ark. — As of Monday, all of Madison County is in a burn ban. Wesley Mckinney with the Arkansas Forestry Division said it's because it is so dry.
"We're starting to show some drought up in that Northwest piece," Mckinney said. "We've got a front coming through tonight, and with that front, we're going to see some elevated fire danger with some lower humidities and a little uptick of wind for the next few days."
For now, the only bans we have in the area are in Madison County and Logan County. However, Fayetteville fire marshal Jeremy Ashley said surrounding counties could soon follow.
"This is a time of year that we do have quite a few more vegetation fires," Ashley said. "It would not surprise me if the weather pattern does not change, if Washington County was in a burn ban within a reasonable amount of time."
While these burn bans are to prevent wildfires from starting, Mckinney said they also help to protect firefighters.
"Our crews, along with the U.S. Forest Service, are responding to a lot of fires, and that can really tax our crews if we don't put those burn bans in place,"Mckinney said. "Our job is to educate the public and make sure public and firefighter safety is our number one thing."
Mckinney said burn bans usually stretch from October to close to the end of the year. During that same time, he said residents may see an uptick in prescribed burns.
"We're getting into transition, and a lot more agencies, private landowners are out doing prescribed fires," Mckinney said. "We will see an uptick that'll go in through October, November, and then we'll kind of see how December and January play out."
Even if you aren't in a burn ban, Mckinney asks that you make sure you keep an eye on the weather before you start a fire.
"If you know you're going to burn, look at it the day before and see what the weather is," he said. "You've got a threshold. If it's below 25% or even 30% humidity, you know, maybe wait a day where your humidities are a little higher, your winds are below 10 miles an hour. Just look at those things."
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