By Ethan Nahté
After a rainy start to the summer, August has left the majority of the state high and dry for the most part. According to arkfireinfo.org for August 29, 59 counties are at a moderate risk for wildfire danger. The remaining 16 counties in northeast Arkansas are at a low risk.
More counties are coming under a burn ban. Currently, 28 of Arkansas’s 75 counties are under the ban. Polk County currently does not have a burn ban, but adjacent counties Sevier, Howard and Montgomery are under a burn ban.
When a local fire district reports dangerous conditions after a long duration of dry weather, along with lack of adequate rainfall or precipitation has created dry and hazardous conditions, a burn ban typically goes into effect. The ban prohibits any outdoor burning until the ban is lifted.
Besides open flames, or coals, other dangers include but are not limited to smoking and littering; mowing areas with hard surfaces such as rocks where a blade could strike a spark; dragging chains from items such as a trailer hitch, and backfiring vehicles.
To see the status of an Arkansas county, visit www.arkfireinfo.org/.
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