KDSN RADIO News
Some counties lift burn bans after rain
The number of active burn bans in Iowa has dropped down to 57 counties. State Fire Marshal Dan Wood says five counties ended their bans thanks to recent storms.
“We’ve experienced a little bit of rain, but, you know, we’ve got a lot, a lot of rain to go to catch up, to get everything, you know, sufficiently moist, where it’s not going to catch on fire as easy.” he says. Bremer County reported a grass fire along Highway 218 near Janesville Monday morning that was believed to be caused by a discarded cigarette. Wood says the dry conditions make a fire possible almost anywhere in counties with bans. “With this being a rural state, and you know, our crops dry out at this time of year, every year, so that doesn’t help any either. And getting those out gives a lot of relief, but we still got to be mindful of there’s a lot of dry grass, a lot of dry crops and stubble out there. So everybody needs to be careful,” Wood says.
He thinks most people have been avoiding open burning in the counties under a ban. “I think so. Haven’t heard too much of people, you know, going against the bans, a few here and there, but not much. I think people are pretty mindful once they get put on,” Wood says. Johnson, Linn, Iowa, Hancock, and Cass County recently lifted their burn bans after some rain.
