Statewide, the past four months have been the 13th driest in nearly half a century. Now that Oklahoma is looking down the barrel of another rainless week, officials across the state are bracing for fires.
“When we know that the humidity is going to be extremely low and the winds are going to be up and the temperatures are up, then naturally everybody's on guard for the possibility of fires,” Grady County Emergency Management Director Dale Thompson said.
Grady is one of more than a dozen counties, mostly clustered in Southwest Oklahoma, that have issued burn bans this week. Under Grady County’s 14-day ban, fireworks and campfires are prohibited. Activities like welding and controlled burns require extra care and precautions.
Thompson said the county doesn’t issue burn bans lightly since it makes things difficult for producers and people with brush piles.
“Farmers have to get some of their fields and everything burn off to plant the next set of crops,” Thompson said. “But the ones that are having to wait now because of the burn ban, that kind of puts them in a position where they'd like to get out there and burn some of their fields and everything off, but they can't do it.”
Thompson said if people are still planning on performing prescribed burns that adhere to state guidelines, they should be extra aware of the weather. It’s best to alert local fire officials before starting a controlled fire because everyone will be on high alert for accidental blazes.
To see if your county is under a burn ban, check the Oklahoma Forestry Service’s map.
This report was produced by the Oklahoma Public Media Exchange, a collaboration of public media organizations. Help support collaborative journalism by donating at the link at the top of this webpage.
