The Arkansas Department of Agriculture issued an increased wildfire notice for the entire state this week. The Forestry Service reports high winds, drought and hot temperatures are leaving many areas susceptible to fires. Wesley McKinney is the state fire management officer and says the conditions are especially dangerous in the Ozarks and western parts of the state, due to a lack of rainfall.
"If you look at the 14-day rainfall, they were anywhere from not even a quarter — maybe a tenth of an inch of moisture. And that's not enough to alleviate any drought. And so now, after that frost that we had, it kind of set the green-up back a little bit and kind of stopped it. And we haven't really had any moisture. And so the green-up's coming, but the soil is dry. We still got about another week or so before the Ozarks really get that canopy under there. We're fighting fires across the state right now. We got some up in the Ozarks. We got some in the Ouachitas right now. And we got crews out there fighting those fires right now."
At least 55 counties in the state have issued burn bans, with all 75 counties under high wildfire designation, according to the Department of Agriculture. Recent prescribed burns in neighboring counties, coupled with high winds, have pushed smoke into Northwest Arkansas, according to Washington County's emergency management. McKinney says these controlled fires are carried out by state and U.S. Forest Service agencies and are important to mitigating wildfire risks in the future.
"Basically, what we're going in there to do is taking the fuels — the dry fuels that are on the ground, the dead fuels — and removing those. But what we've seen this year, too, with the pattern that we had into February, into March, I think the U.S. Forest Service broke records for controlled burns — like 150,000 acres in February across the state. So that's a lot. I think we're going to see some good turnout numbers for prescribed burns. I know it affected a lot of people, the smoke and stuff like that. But this time of year it's very critical that we get in there and get these burns done to alleviate any large wildfires."
McKinney says people should avoid all outdoor burning and activities involving open flames. And despite forecasts for rain in the next few days, he says fires could still pose a risk.
"Anywhere 15 to 20 inches to get us out of this drought. And this ain't going to be a drought buster, the moisture that we're going to get. So you still got to be cautious even though you get a little rain. It takes grass, pine needles, leaves one hour to cure in sunlight and they're ready to burn again."
Those caught burning during a burn ban could face fines or even criminal charges. Officials urge anyone who sees an uncontrolled fire to call 911 or contact their local fire department immediately.
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