Pottawatamie County institutes burn ban

Pottawatamie County on Monday became the third in the state to ban open burning, after a fire the day before that scorched 4-thousand acres and destroyed four rural homes. State public-safety spokesman Jim Saunders explains some cities and counties have permanent ordinances that ban outdoor burning of trash or yard debris all the time. In places that don’t have a permanent ban, when city or county leaders decide they need one temporarily they send a request to the state fire marshal’s office, which will determine whether to grant a ban. The fire marshal’s office does not have the power to declare a burning-ban on its own, no matter how dry the weather may get. While late spring can bring a risk of wildfires, Saunders points out we usually have snow on the ground around this date. He calls it “abnormal” to see grassfires this time of year, but with the weekend’s high winds and lack of moisture the dry conditions were conducive to grass fires. Some years there’s a spring “fire season” though that depends on the year’s weather and whether it’s been dry. Three counties now have requested and been granted an outdoor burning ban. Saunders says there are common-sense tips for anyone planning to do outdoor burning, even if it’s not banned in your area.Make sure conditions are right for it, he advises — no high winds or extraordinarily dry conditions. If you do an open burn, make sure it’s under control and that you can keep it that way, and when you’re done extinguish it completely. Pottawatamie County was added Monday afternoon to Cass and Mills counties on the burn-ban list. To see the latest list of counties with burning bans, click the link on this story at radioiowa-dot-com. http://www.state.ia.us/government/dps/fm/burnban1199.htm