It's Hot and Dry - Please Use Caution!!!
No fire restrictions...YET
July 10, 2007
Fire managers for local land management agencies, including the Flathead and Kootenai National Forests, Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, Glacier National Park, and Flathead, Lincoln, Lake and Sanders Counties, ask Northwest Montana residents and visitors to use caution in all activities that have the potential to ignite a fire. Conditions in Northwest Montana are dry and firefighters have recently responded to numerous human-caused fires in the area.
Fire restrictions are NOT in place in Northwest Montana. It is anticipated that continued hot temperatures and lack of moisture will prompt fire restrictions in the near future.
Fire safety tips:
- Build safe campfires, by keeping them small and contained. Never leave your fire unattended, and make sure it is DEAD OUT before you leave it. State law requires that anyone lighting a campfire must have a bucket and shovel handy.
- Use equipment that has a properly functioning spark arrester. All types of equipment and vehicles are required to have spark arresters, including chain saws, portable generators, cross-country vehicles, motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles, and farm equipment.
-When smoking is permitted, safe practices include a 3-foot clearing around the smoker, a fully extinguished cigarette or cigar prior to disposal, and use of an appropriate container for disposal.
-Check burn piles from the spring and earlier this year. Many of these burns are able to carry fire over several weeks and should be inspected regularly.
Anyone causing a wildfire can be held financially responsible for damages and suppression costs.
For more information contact a local Forest Service, Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, National Park Service Office or your local fire department.
Story by Denise Germann, Public Affairs Officer, Flathead National Forest
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