Dry Weather Makes Outdoor Burning A Risk Across Region

Outdoor burning right now is a risk, to yourself, your property and the community.

That according to Overton County Fire Chief Association Chairman Scott Ray. Ray said current weather conditions are especially dry and windy, even for a typically dry month of October. Ray said that with these conditions, it can be especially difficult to stop a fire if it were to get out of control.

“When it’s so dry, the fuel is right there and it’s so dry it just burns so fast and it’s just hard to get ahead of it and stop it before it burns away from you or gets away from you,” Ray said. “From a fire department or a forestry and everybody does a good job, it’s very hard to stop it when it’s dry like this.”

Ray said that the falling leaves at this time of year also add to the potential fuel on the ground for the fire to spread. Ray said he encourages citizens to find alternative ways to dispose of their potential burning material until the weather improves.

“Usually somebody will call in at 911 and say a fire’s out of control,” Ray said. “And a lot of times it’s not something done deliberately, it’s just someone burning trash or whatever and the wind catches it and it grows from there.”

Ray said the wind can fan flames, to burn hotter and faster than one might anticipate. simple burning of material can lead to unintended consequences through an out-of-control fire.

“Their house, their neighbor’s house, even many houses,” Ray said. “If it gets in the woods we don’t know how far it’ll travel, it can travel a long ways.”