Small Town News

Burn ban lifted, caution urged with fires

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Wharton County's burn ban restrictions lifted Saturday, but fire officials request those wanting to torch burn piles or trash exercise caution.

Since Sept. 1, rainfall totals throughout Wharton County have ranged from about an inch and a half to better than 4 inches, finally saturating parched ground.

In El Campo, the Lower Colorado River Authority gauge located on the El Campo Memorial Hospital grounds collected 2.17 inches between Sept. 1 and Sept. 14 while the gauge near Speaks recorded 4.44 inches.

The rain gauge on the Colorado River in Wharton collected 2.16 inches during the same time period while in Glen Flora the total was 1.82 inches and in Altair, 1.71 inches.

"If anybody does burn, please be extremely careful of the undergrowth that is under all that green stuff," El Campo Fire Chief Jimmy Nielsen said Monday. "The dead stuff underneath there will burn, it will burn quickly."

Those opting to burn are urged to notify the Wharton County Sheriff's Office or the fire department anytime they are going to do a controlled burn to prevent emergency crews from being dispatched if a passerby sees flames.

Wharton County has been under an outdoor burn ban since June 24 when the Keetch-Byram Drought Index, the system used by the state to indicate measure the dryness of soils, exceeded 500 - the level at which grasslands are considered to be in extreme danger of wildfire.

By order of the commissioners court, the county automatically goes under outdoor burning restrictions when the zero-to-800 scale exceeds 500 on average and automatic lifts restrictions when the scale drops below that figure.

Wharton County Emergency Management Coordinator Andy Kirkland announced the immediate lifting of the ban Saturday.

By Monday, the KBDI registered 335 on average in Wharton County. The wettest area of the county, located Round Mott, scored 22, or almost completely saturated. The driest area, near Magnet, still graded 643.



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© 2009 East Bernard Express East Bernard, Texas. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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