Floyd County remains under burn ban despite rain

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

Floyd County is under a burn ban, put into effect on Friday because of the extremely dry conditions and unseasonably warm temperatures.

Despite the rain received Monday, the ban remains in effect, the Charles City Fire Department said.

The department posted Saturday that the Office of the State Fire Marshal had proclaimed the ban after being requested by Floyd County Emergency Management Coordinator Jason Webster on behalf of the county’s fire departments.

“Upon investigation the fire marshal finds that conditions in Floyd County are such that open burning constitutes a danger to life or property,” the notice says. “It is therefore ordered that no person shall engage in open burning in Floyd County,” except as specifically permitted by Iowa Code.

Violating the order is a simple misdemeanor.

The Charles City Fire Department responded to two fires on Saturday. The first was a stump on fire on the riverbank behind South Cedar Terrace.

“Due to the current dry conditions we are facing it was necessary to extinguish the smoldering stump quickly,” the Fire Department reported. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire and returned to the station in less than a hour.

A little before 3 p.m. Saturday the firefighters were paged to assist the Nashua Fire Department at a residence south of Charles City along Shadow Avenue south of 290th Street.

“The page was for a shed on fire and the fire was spreading to nearby trees,” the CCFD reported. “Our crews arrived with our brush truck and our mini truck to help extinguish any spreading fire and to help protect the surrounding trees.”

Firefighters were at the scene for about 1½ hours, the department said.

“Remember it is extremely dry out and we are currently under an open burn ban. Please refrain from any outdoor burning,” the report said.

Iowa Code allows supervised controlled burns where a permit has been issued by the fire chief of the fire district where the burn will occur. The ban also does not prohibit the use of “outdoor fireplaces, barbecue grills, properly supervised landfills, or the burning of trash in incinerators or trash burners made of metal, concrete, masonry, or heavy one-inch wire mesh.”

The burn ban will remain in effect until Webster notifies the state fire marshal that conditions dangerous to life or property no longer exist.