Regardless of the purpose, it’s important to keep safety in mind when doing a controlled burn, according to Webster County Emergency Management.

“A lot of times, what people consider a controlled burn will actually get out of control or start getting close to a building or structure or electric poles,” said Webster County Emergency Management Coordinator Dylan Hagen. “The wind could change direction, where the smoke is blowing across the roads and that, causing visibility issues.”

The first thing someone should do when planning a prescribed or controlled burn is verify that the county is not in a burn ban. That information can be found on the Iowa State Fire Marshal’s website, https://dps.iowa.gov/divisions/state-fire-marshal/burn-bans.

Secondly, they should contact the local fire departments to verify the fire risk conditions and notify the departments and county dispatch of the planned burns so they are prepared when callers begin reporting fire and smoke sightings.

-Messenger file photo by Hans Madsen
Badger firefighter Jason Smith keeps an out towards the exterior of the house as the freshly set fire gets going behind him during a controlled structure burn in Badger in 2018.

Checking the forecast is another important step to planning a burn.

“Weather would be a big thing on it,” Hagen said. ”Making sure it’s not windy, or the wind is out of the right direction to where you’re not going to be spreading fire to something you don’t want to burn.”

While Webster County is not in a burn ban, as of Wednesday night, that could change as high winds are expected across the state through Thursday.

On Wednesday, the National Weather Service listed Webster County as a “moderate risk” on its Grassland Fire Danger Index. However, Hagen said, that designation could change day to day. That information can be tracked at https://www.weather.gov/dmx/fire.

“If we get a good day of strong winds, they could make a world of difference on grassland areas, timber, just drying out any vegetation,” Hagen said.

-Messenger file photo by Hans Madsen

Hagen added that it’s important to stay with the fire when doing a controlled burn. Often, he said, a person will light a controlled burn or be burning Conservation Reserve Program ground and think that everything is fine so they will leave. There will be no person around watching the fire and passersby will call it in, thinking it’s a fire that’s out of control.

Having proper clothing and proper tools while doing a controlled burn are also important, Hagen said.

Ground conditions are another concern when planning a prescribed burn. Muddy conditions can create some problems for fires not near paved roads.

“Right now, as soft as the ground is, if you were to get a fire heading into an area of dry timber, a lot of our equipment can’t get back into there,” Hagen said. “We’d still find a way to put it out, but we’d be limited on that.”

Following safety guidelines prevents disaster, Hagen said.

“People have burned down barns and garages,” he said. “They had a controlled burn going and they thought it might have been out, but the wind picked up and blew embers into a barn or whatever structure.”

Even when the risk of fire spreading is low, it’s still very important to take every possible precaution to avoid an out of control fire, Hagen said.

“Make sure that you notify the local fire department, that way at least they’re prepared just in case,” he said.