(LEX 18) — At least 51 Kentucky counties now have burn bans in place.
Everywhere else, burn restrictions are active. Those restrictions state that burning is only allowed between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. if within 150 feet of a brushland or woodland.
These are in place because the dry conditions we're seeing across the state can make fires spread more quickly.
"We're incredibly dry so any fires that are started and get out of control can rapidly become completely out of control and cause a lot of damage," LEX 18 StormTracker Meteorologist Tom Ackerman said.
An example of that is a fire that Montgomery County Fire/EMS responded to Sunday. It was a controlled burn that quickly grew out of control.
"He was burning something and it spread to his hay so we just put it out to keep from destroying all of his hay," EMS Supervisor Zach Adams said.
Adams said it was one of four fires they responded to Sunday and 15th this month. He said most of those were started when they weren't supposed to under burn restrictions.
"Obviously, you're taking away resources from other places that potentially need it more when you burn things you're not supposed to or burn in the hours you're not supposed to, not to mention it endangers your neighbors and our wooded areas," Adams said.
With the area in a moderate drought, Ackerman said conditions are not likely to change soon. We will need repeated rounds of soaking rain to get to a place where fire conditions aren't as dangerous. Even the rain we are expecting soon just won't cut it, according to Ackerman.
"It's nice to have that come through but it barely even dings a drought," he said.
Visit here to learn if your county is under a burn ban. If not, your county is under statewide fire restrictions.
