By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
As of April 4, nearly all of Barton County was listed in the "exceptional drought" category released by U.S. Drought Monitor. Since then, fire conditions have only worsened with no moisture, high winds, and climbing temperatures. On behalf of area fire chiefs, Barton County Emergency Risk Manager Amy Miller requested a burn ban be reinstated county-wide. Claflin Fire Chief Doug Hubbard attended the meeting to support the request.
"We know a burn ban won't prevent the accidental fires, and we've had some of those in our area," Hubbard said. "We also had a fire that was caused by a controlled burn, a big one. We're just asking for some help with prevention."
Commissioners and other county officials have spoken to fire chiefs from Great Bend, Ellinwood, and Hoisington. All agree a burn ban is an appropriate measure. Albert Fire Chief Charlie Keller said his city burned limbs in a pit two months ago. The city does not add limbs for at least a month, but a resident added limbs Saturday, resulting in a fire.
"Two months, it was still hot," Keller said. "I went out and dumped 2,000 gallons of water on it. It seems to be out. I've been checking it every day. It isn't that they burn today and it's over is our issue. This stuff stays hot. As dry as we are, no rain in the foreseeable future, this puts a little more teeth into what we're trying to do out here preventing."
Ness County has had a burn ban for approximately a month, and Rush County recently reinstated a ban. Last week, Governor Laura Kelly declared a disaster emergency for wildland fires to assist counties in the event of a large fire.