While Oktibbeha County and Starkville have both enacted burn bans in the face of record heat and sparse rain, Lowndes County and Columbus have not.
Monday afternoon the Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors unanimously enacted a countywide burn ban at the request of Fire Services Coordinator Patrick Warner.
“The weather conditions are pretty bad, and half the state is already under a burn ban,” Warner said.
According to the National Weather Service’s Jackson office, the state is in the midst of a historic heat wave. Temperatures on Tuesday were in the very high 90s, with high temperatures expected to approach or exceed all-time highs by Thursday.
NWS Jackson projected highs in the 100-to-105-degree range with heat indices between 110 and 120 degrees Wednesday through Saturday, according to its website.
The heat and the lack of rain mean increasingly favorable conditions for fires, Warner told The Dispatch Tuesday afternoon.
“It’s the heat on the one hand, but then we haven’t had any rain in a good while,” Warner said. “Yesterday morning we had a brush fire out on Rock Hill Road, and we had one over the weekend during the Sturgis rally.”
Warner said the burn ban affects all outdoor fires. No burn permits will be issued while the ban is in effect.
The ban lasts until further notice, Warner said.
The city of Starkville also enacted a burn ban Monday afternoon, according to Starkville Fire Marshal Mark McCurdy.
McCurdy also cited high temperatures and lack of rain as the driving factor.
Likewise, the ban will last until further notice.
McCurdy asked people to be extra careful while the burn ban is in effect.
“A perfect example is people driving down the highway and throwing a cigarette out the window,” McCurdy said. “The other thing we caution people about is using the grill at their house. We recommend waiting 24 hours to dispose of them, and when you do, pour water over the top of them to make sure.”
Lowndes County and the city of Columbus do not have burn bans in place as of yet.
Lowndes Fire Services Coordinator Neal Austin said his county has had no problems so far.
“We have not had a grass fire yet,” Austin said. “As it stands right now we have not seen a rash (of fires), or even one, really, so we have not gone in that direction yet.”
Gov. Tate Reeves signed a burn ban into effect on Friday for about 40 counties, but Lowndes, Oktibbeha, Clay and Noxubee were not included.
“We’ve had a pretty good amount of rain around us, but this week might change things with it being 100 degrees all week,” Austin said. “We reevaluate things every week.”
Columbus Fire and Rescue Chief Duane Hughes said the city does not have a burn ban in place currently, either, but he intended to talk to Emergency Management Agency Director Cindy Lawrence about whether one is needed.
“We like to try to work in concert with the county,” he said.
Brian Jones is the local government reporter for Columbus and Lowndes County.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
Join the Discussion