With significant rainfall in the Quinte region, local fire departments are starting to relax burn bans which have been in effect the last couple of weeks.
On Wednesday afternoon, the Belleville Fire Department lifted the partial ban which had been in place since July 9, but Chief Mark MacDonald warns if more rain doesn’t blanket the region, bans could soon be put back in place.
“We’ve been talking to each other — the various (fire) departments in the region and we know people like to enjoy their summer campfire, so the rain we’ve received should help them to do that safely,” he said. “I always say, it doesn’t take a whole lot of flames to brown a marshmallow, so the smaller the fire the better.”
Earlier this month, Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources reported an increase of 350 per cent in fires this year compared to the same period last year.
MacDonald said reports of dry wells in the area serve as a warning of dry ground and roots.
“A fire can get into the root system when the ground dries out and then you can get pop-up fires that may come up the next day 200 feet away from the original fire,” he explained. “Then you have to get into excavation and things of that nature and it becomes very labour intensive. I would discourage people from burning brush right now and stay with small, attended campfires.”
Quinte West followed suit, lifting a partial ban in that municipality which had also been in effect for a couple of weeks.
Fire Chief John Whelan said people still need to exercise caution if they are burning.
“The two things people have to remember is just like the other municipalities, you have to have a burn permit and you have to make sure you pay attention to the distances,” he explained. “You can only burn yard waste, not things like chesterfields or other household furniture and make sure you have water available in case something happens.
Across the Norris Whitney Bridge in Prince Edward County, one day of rainfall has not satisfied officials there enough to lift the ban and Fire Chief Scott Manlow reports a partial ban is still in effect.
“We still have a partial ban in place (and that means) campfires and burn barrels are allowed, but we’re still not allowing open burning of large brush piles etc,” he said.
Manlow said grass and brush is still too dry to completely lift the ban.
“Things have to green up a lot before we allow open burning,” he said.
Brighton fire officials also lifted the burn ban in that municipality Wednesday morning.
Chief Rick Caddick said residents still need to exercise caution when burning.
“Residents are reminded that precautions must always be taken to ensure that campfires remain small and that the rules of the open air burning bylaw are followed,” he said in a release. “Burning permits must be obtained and activated before any burning can take place.”
MacDonald said the area still need more precipitation.
“If it gets sunny and the wind picks up then I can see us going right back into (a ban),” he said. “We still need a good soaking to make sure the ground and vegetation is saturated.”
Link to original article in Intelligencer.ca: Rainfall brings lifting of burning bans