Brush fires increase due to dry weather
Butler County escaped a harsh winter, but mild weather could produce an influx of brush fires in coming months, according to county fire chiefs.
While officials say the brush fire season usually occurs from March to April, a dry February resulted in some departments responding more frequently.
Scott Garing, chief of Harmony Fire District, said his crews have responded to 15 so far this year.
“Most of them were complete accidents,” he said.
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the state’s wildfire season can last until May and picks back up in October and November.
Garing said brush fires often are started by residents burning yard waste, and the uncharacteristically warm weather has motivated people to spruce up their yards earlier this year.
“An upswing in temperatures means people are outside wanting to clean up their yards,” he said. “Everyone wants to pick up from the storm, get rid of yard waste. But none of it is green, which means there’s no moisture in it. Coupled with wind, it could make a fast-spreading fire.”
An unattended fire can produce embers that blow onto other dry areas, according to Nathan Wulff, assistant chief for Unionville Volunteer Fire Company.
“All it takes is a sunny day and wind,” he said. “The biggest thing is to avoid burning when it’s dry.”
Wulff said Unionville has assisted on brush fires only in surrounding municipalities this year, whereas Justin O’Hara, chief of West Sunbury Volunteer Fire Department, said they’ve had two of their own.
“Brush and bushes, cattails, a lot of that is dry, even though it rained that week. The ground is wet, but the grass is drier than folks think,” he said.
He added that most brush fires are started by people conducting controlled burns. He said one recent exception was when a power line broke and arced into a cornfield on Halston Road in the borough.
The biggest threat posed by brush fires is their ability to spread uncontrollably, sometimes threatening trees or structures, O’Hara said. To stop flames in the woods, firefighters will create a “fire break” by dragging their feet along the ground to make a 3-foot wide dirt path.
“It can stop a fire in its tracks,” he said.
Garing said at least one brush fire this year has threatened a structure in Lancaster Township.
A few factors contribute to the start of a brush fire, O’Hara said.
“One major thing to look at is wind speed and direction. If downwind from a fire is a green field, it’s not much of an issue; if downwind is woods or brush, it increases the risk,” he said.
The best way to mitigate potential damage is to keep an eye on controlled burns, he added.
“Things can happen really quickly. You can stop a brush fire in its infancy if you take a broom to it to stop the smaller flames,” he said.
“Pick a day that’s not windy, and make sure everything around it is wet. This makes it so it can’t spread to other areas,” Garing said of controlled burns.
Garing also said residents should familiarize themselves with their municipality’s code for controlled burns, as some only allow burning at certain times of the year.
The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources said other ways to prevent brush fires are to use caution when disposing of cigarettes and waiting for fire embers to be completely out, dousing them with water and covering them with dirt.
