County continues to see effect of dry conditions, wildfires

Published 12:02 am Friday, November 18, 2016

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Mother Nature continues to put a squeeze on the state as wildfires continue to blaze.
According to the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, the number of active fires in the state — as of Thursday, Nov. 17 — reached the total number of 64 with over 17,700 acres burned.
The severity of fires across the state saw Gov. Bill Haslam implement a regional burn ban on 51 counties, including Carter and Johnson, until Thursday, Dec. 15. The ban followed up a pair of bans already put in place by the Elizabethton Fire Department and at Roan Mountain State Park.
Corrine Gould, with Gov. Haslam’s office, issued a statement to the Elizabethton Star Thursday afternoon adding clarification to the ban.
The regional ban applies to open-air burning, including a prohibition of campfires and burning of brush, vegetation and construction.
Generally, according to Gould, the burn ban does not apply to cooking grills and other similar lighted devices that are well-established in a confined, protected area away from the woodlands. Gould encouraged citizens to keep in mind that the disposal of hot grill ashes can be a fire hazard. In all cases, grill ashes should be allowed to completely cool or be saturated with water before disposal.
“Common sense is the best defense,” she said. “And when in doubt, do without.”
James Heaton, with the Forestry Service, provided an update Thursday evening for the most recent fire reported in Tiger Creek.
Carter County hasn’t received the severity of fires compared to other pockets across the state, but Heaton added the office has responded to around four to five fires in the last few days.
“We just finished with the fire in Tiger Creek,” he said. “It burned 44 acres on private property and is being looked at as a suspicious fire and currently under investigation.”
Heaton encouraged residents to be smart while working outdoors and to follow along with the burn ban in place.
The state is upping the ante to help prosecute suspected arsonists — which is the primary cause of the fires currently burning across the state, according to the agriculture department.
The state’s arson reward fund is now at $2,500 for a tip that leads to an arson arrest and conviction. The Tennessee Farm Bureau Federation and Tennessee Forestry Association committed donations to increase the fund. Individuals that are convicted of a crime risk prison time, depending on the severity of the fire.
But while the state is aiming to snuff out fires, Mother Nature isn’t providing too much help with limited rain expected, especially in Carter County.
“We have a cold front coming in Saturday,” David Hotz, forecaster with the National Weather Service – Morristown office, said. “There will be some showers in the area but we’re expecting somewhere around less than a quarter-of-an-inch.”
The forecast doesn’t look to bring any help to the wildfires, Hotz said, with winds from the cold front expected to cause fires to spread, causing concern.
“This has been definitely one of the driest seasons on record,” he added. “This weather makes it easier for the fires to spread. We’re expecting things to be dry by midweek. Then we can expect a possible chance of rain.”
The drought-like conditions have made an impact in Carter County.
Elizabethton/Carter County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) Director Gary Smith said that the office has received requests from the Stoney Creek area with homes not having drinking water due to springs or wells drying up due to drought conditions.
Smith did add the agency received pallets of water from an agency, and others are looking at helping the situation locally.
The EMA director encouraged citizens to follow the burn ban put in effect by the state, especially with no miniscule help coming from the weather forecast over the next week.
Individuals that want to make a donation of an item, like bottled water, can contact the EMA office at (423) 542-1888 for further coordination.

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