Controlled Burns Get Out Of Control Quickly In Drought Conditions

A series of fires this week, many caused by controlled burns that got out of hand, highlight the dangers of burning in severe drought conditions and the extra attention that must be paid.According to the National Weather Services, most of Nebraska remains in moderate to severe drought conditions, with a few areas, such as Boone County, qualifying as “extreme drought.”On Monday, March 1, Jefferson and Saline County Emergency Management had forecasted high to very high fire danger for the area and noted, “Until we get some green grass to blend in with the dry grass the fire danger will continue.”Emergency Management also warned on Monday, “A fire or two that were controlled burns got away today so it shows even in a high fire danger they can be difficult to control. Check out the wind forecast from the time you want to start a burn through the next day. Plan ahead.”High winds and dry grass also contributed to a pair of fires on Thursday, March 17.Shortly before 9:30 a.m., both Fairbury and Jansen Rural Fire Districts were dispatched to the scene of a fire that blackened several acres near 572 Avenue and 712 Road, east of Fairbury.Later that morning, at approximately 11:40 a.m., dispatch called both Alexandria and Daykin fire departments to 558th Avenue and 719th Road in Meridian to handle another fire.Steele City Fire responded to a report of a third fire, a cornstalk fire, that day at approximately 3:50 p.m., on 576 Avenue, south of Steele City.The problem was not exclusively in Jefferson County, either. At the request of the States Wildfire Incident Response Assistance Team, Fairbury Rural Fire and Jansen Rural Fire sent a type six brush truck and three personnel from each department to assist with the wildfire control efforts on the Votaw Road Wildfire in Lincoln County on Thursday.

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Larry Haake

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