Extremely High Fire Danger Expected On Friday & Saturday: To paraphrase a certain bear, “Only you can prevent brush & forest fires” or as my wife has said, “Don’t be stupid by doing any sort of burning”. I don’t really know how else to get the message about not doing any sort of burning out. Local fire departments have pleaded on Social Media and in the news media to not do any sort of burning, but yet there are still multiple reports of illegal burns each and every day.
Think of it this way, one brush fire that gets out of control could burn down your home, it could burn down your neighbor’s home, it could even burn down your neighborhood. I know we are in nearly uncharted territory with how long the extreme fire danger has lasted and this is something we are not used to here in Western and Central Mass. Conflagrations are extremely rare in New England, but they have happened before.
One I can think of off of the top of my head is October of 1947 when southern, central and downeast Maine burned. The towns of Shapleigh, Waterboro, Alfred, Lyman, Newfield, Kennebunk, Kennebunkport, Biddeford and Saco were devastated by the fires. In addition, Mount Desert Island, Acadia National Park and the town of Bar Harbor was virtually destroyed by the October fires. LINK - https://newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/maine-fires-1947-year-state-burned/ .
Believe me, believe your local fire department when we say don’t do any sort of burning.
Just today, there was a small grass fire caused by a lawnmower here in Sturbridge and there was a 7-plus acre brush fire on the Springfield-Chicopee line right off of the Mass Pike (right at the I-291 exit).
I know all of this probably sounds like the Charlie Brown teacher to some of you & I know some of you don’t like being told what to do, but I’m being extremely serious when I say that conditions out there are extraordinarily dry and it is a tinder box out there.
EXTREME Fire Danger is once again expected on Friday and in fact, the danger of brush fires looks very high to extreme once again on Saturday too.
Because of this, I AM BEGGING & PLEADING with you to NOT do any of these activities that would potentially lead to a fast moving and fast spreading brush fire (or as my wife has said, don’t be stupid by doing any of these things – I’m much more diplomatic in my wording):
- Burning of brush piles.
- Having any sort of a campfire.
- Starting a fire in your fire pit.
- Using power tools of any sort in high grass or in dry leaves.
- Idling your vehicle in tall grass or on dry leaves.
- Improperly discarding cigarettes.
- Dumping ash in leaves or in high grass.
As I already mentioned, local fire departments continue to work their butts off responding to numerous brush fires and illegal burns and unfortunately, I expect them to have a very busy day tomorrow and also on Saturday. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE do not add to their workload by accidentally starting a brush fire. I PLEAD & BEG you - DO NOT be stupid and do any sort of burning!!
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