Fire Danger!

Alabama Forest Fire officials in Baldwin County urge property owners to use extreme caution when burning outdoors

by Pat Peterson

Published: Fri, January 23, 2009 - 5:02 pm CST Last Updated: Fri, January 23, 2009 - 6:11 pm CST

Firefighters in Baldwin County have been busy this week battling brush fires. Low humidity and gusty winds have produced "ideal" conditions for wildfires.

"During these winter months, the seasonal pattern is that we have lower humidity and higher wind and that again is the recipe for fire spread and fire danger," says Foley Fire Chief Joey Darby."

Steve Mannhard had a close call. Mannhard owns a Christmas tree farm in the Marlow community. He watched helplessly while a brush fire across the street threatened his business.

"It was blowing so hard that day and I said, you know, that fire could get out of control really quick," says Mannhard.

Fish River Trees was saved but in the end, more than 60 acres of forest were destroyed.

"A little careless cigarette on the ground, a match, anything starting a fire, somebody burning a few leaves the wind can get out of hand so fast that we can lose a lot of property worth a lot of money," says Mannhard.

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turnipman Says:

Sat, Jan 24, 2009 at 9:47 am

Hey, maybe you firemans out there ought to lobby the state to get rid of the dumb burn ban they set from May to October. They say the ban is for older folks with breathing problems. Huh, I guess they don’t breath in the winter. How dumb can some people be? May to October is the rainy season with less chance of wildfire danger. If you have breathing problems, get a resperator or stay indoors. This burn ban time period endangers more people and property when it is lifted in the fall than it protects. Yea, burn your yard debris in the winter when all vegatation is bone dry and subject to wildfires. How DUMB!!! But, I guess it gives our whistle blowin firemans a chance to “Hone Thier Skills” and get out of the house, hoping they do not need to apply these skills in the “PROTECTION of LIFE and Property”, in that order, in the event of structural fire or other life threatening events.