Recently you may have noticed people burning up yard waste and extra leaves, and you may even be planning on doing it yourself.
Manitowoc County Emergency Services Director Kayla Beckerdite reminds people that this time of the year is often very dry and windy, making for conditions that could cause a fire to get out of control quickly.
If you are planning on burning brush soon, she says the first thing to do is check the National Weather Service’s fire outlook which figures in things like temperature, wind, and atmospheric conditions to give you the best times for burning.
Beckerdite also reminds us to keep the fire a safe distance away from things you don’t want to watch fire, and to never leave any fire go unattended even for a minute or two.
She also added that a call to the dispatch center right before you burn is a big help.
“Let them know. They can put it on a map. They’ll take your name, your phone number and they’ll have you call back when you’re done burning,” the Emergency Management leader explained. “That way if we’re getting calls from passer-byes about flames we know ‘Hey, it’s a controlled burn’. That way too, if you have a controlled burn and it starts getting out of control quickly, we already have your location; we already have your contact information, and we can get ahold of you.”
Beckerdite also says to make sure you call your local municipality to adhere to burning permits and reach out to local fire departments if you have questions.
The number for the Manitowoc County Dispatch is (920) 683-4200.
