A Reminder from the Fire Chief: as summer heats up, so does fire danger

Well, we made it through another winter and spring and really had no flooding issues; a nice break for all those that have been having issues the past few years.

Now we head back into fire season.

Weather

From all the outlooks we have gotten, it appears that we can have an average season or we can have an above-average fire season. Hard to predict what Mother Nature is gonna throw at us. I'll get back to you in October and tell ya what kinda fire season we had in case you didn't notice.

That being said, as much as we want to see summer and warm temps, it really helps our fire season out when we get this June rain. June generally dictates how bad July and August are going to be in regard to drying out and upping that fire danger. If we get plenty of June moisture, normally we tend to have a lighter fire season. Normally. All it takes a week or so of hot, dry and windy, the green goes away and we get a few nasty dry thunderstorms, and it can change rapidly. We will hit 'em as they come and hope that we can keep getting some good wetting rains every couple days. 

 That brings us to fireworks, campfires and general fire safety.

Campfires and calls

The public is pretty good about being careful with their campfires and debris burning up here in the Blackfoot.

Most of our big fires are lightning caused. Folks just don't want to be responsible for lighting the valley on fire and possibly burning down houses, so you are all being extra diligent. We appreciate that. I appreciate the phone calls and people asking if its OK to burn and letting me know when they are burning; folks asking if its OK to have a campfire; people calling in and reporting smoke. It's nice knowing that everyone is out there watching and being our eyes and ears all over the place. I'd rather hear 10 times about a little smoke people are seeing and find out it's just a boiler or campfire, than hearing nothing and finding out later when a fire takes off up the hill. Thank you!

Burn permits

Remember, if you are going to burn debris, you must have a burn permit AND it has to be activated.

Please get and activate burn permits when burning!! The benefits of having this system are huge.

By activating them we can see on the site who is burning where.

It lets me and our dispatch see on the map if there is a burn permit activated in an area we get a fire call on. If there is, we can call them and don't have to go hurrying out there for a controlled burn.

It saves us and law enforcement a lot of time chasing smoke sightings, especially when it's in a neighborhood and we are all running Code 3 to get there to find out someone didn't activate their permit. That puts a whole bunch of people in danger on the roads and highways, and wastes a bunch of time for those responders who hurry to get there to save a home or stop it from spreading.

If we close burning, the system will not let you activate your permit and lets you know its closed.

Responsibility

Also remember... If you light it, you own it.

If you light a debris pile and it gets away and burns your neighbor's house down, or if it runs up the hills and burns the forest down, that's on you and you will be financially accountable for damages and suppression costs. Keep this in mind every time you light it.

Fireworks

As far as fireworks go, there are some things to keep in mind. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. If its windy and dry, you shouldn't be putting hot, flaming fireworks up in the air to land at your neighbor's house and put them in danger. Or sending them up so the wind carries them into a bunch of red and dead trees. Think about where that firework is going to land, not just that it looks cool and light another. You send it and it catches the woods on fire or your neighbor's house, you are gonna be responsible for that.

Remember, USFS and State lands are off limits to fireworks. Period. It's got to be private land, with permission from property owner.

Be smart, be respectful of others, and be careful. Remember, we have a lot of veterans and pets that don't do well with fireworks. Just please keep this in the back of your mind when you are planning to light things that go boom.

COVID

The 4th is near and its gonna be wild in Lincoln, being the holiday is on a weekend, and a lot of other towns around  have canceled their festivities. Be mindful of social distancing. Just because you aren't worried about the six-foot spacing doesn't mean the person next to you isn't. Do what you can to keep that spacing.

If you have pre-existing conditions that make you vulnerable, maybe it wouldn't be wise to be out in public while town is packed.

We respect everyone's right to get outside and celebrate our country's freedom, just be careful. 

Have a great summer and 4th and be safe and as always, if you have questions or concerns, give me a call.