Planning on grilling steaks or roasting marshmallows over a campfire during the Fourth of July weekend? Well, don’t do it—unless it’s at a designated campfire location.
According to a press release from the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, the county fire department, in conjunction with all other fire departments in the county, is banning open burning anywhere in the county, including all cities within the county, until the ban is lifted. Permitted burns are also suspended.
On June 23, CAL FIRE issued a statement that said use of campfires is restricted to within established campfire facilities located in established public campgrounds. The restrictions are being enforced in most areas of southern California due to the extreme dryness of the vegetation.
The announcement comes in the wake of several local and regional fires, including the June 23 brush fire off of Refugio Canyon Road in the Santa Ynez Valley area, and approximately 30 fires burning statewide.
As of press time, the California Office of Emergency Services reported that fire crews had managed to get around some of the bigger fires in northern California, but “red flag warnings” (the most extreme fire dangers) remained in effect for the region until further notice.
On June 30, weather forecasters predicted continued bouts of dry lightning and thunderstorms, similar to the storms that first ignited the fires weeks ago. According to the U.S. Forest Service, the weather is expected to become more intense as the fire season hits its peak in late July and early August.
The hot weather, coupled with the state’s low rainfall average and high levels of dry vegetation, could cause the fires to burn for weeks or months until they are brought fully under control, the report said.
More than 30 Santa Barbara County firefighters have already been dispatched to help fight the blazes up north, as well as fire engines from the Santa Barbara County, Santa Barbara, Santa Maria, and Guadalupe Fire Departments.
Captain Eli Iskow, Public Information Officer for the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, was quick to remind the public; “The deployment of firefighting resources out of our area does not impact the ability of the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, or any of our other local fire departments, to respond to emergency needs within our jurisdictions.
“This benefits our communities in times when the situation is reversed and the need for firefighting resources is in our own area,” Iskow said in a press release. “Remember that for two solid months last summer, during the Zaca Fire, there were between 500 to 2,500 firefighters from all over the state fighting the fire on a 24/7 basis.”
This article appears in Jul 3-10, 2008.
