Spring increases the danger of wildfires

As spring blossoms in Tennessee, so does the potential for wildfires.
The spring fire season, prompted by warming weather, began Feb. 15 and ends around May 15. And as spring begins, there are sections of Tennessee that are in the grip of drought.
“A lot of times, it’s people burning debris and there are arsons, too,’’ said Danny Osborne, an area forester. “Some are caused by lightning strikes, but most of our fires are human caused, one way or another.’’
The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration Drought Monitor shows Tennessee counties along the Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi borders have moderate drought conditions. Those extend through Memphis and partway up the Mississippi River Valley. The remainder of West Tennessee and the northwestern part of Middle Tennessee are listed as abnormally dry.
The National Weather Services’ spring outlook, however, calls for sufficient rain that the dry conditions are likely to improve.
Outdoor burning permits are required from Oct. 15-May 15.
The Forestry Division is part of the Tennessee Department of Agriculture.
Division spokesman Tim Phelps said 2010 was a bit below the five-year average for the number of wildfires statewide. “Last year, 20,000 acres burned, with a total of 1,671 fires,’’ he said.
The last bad year for wildfires in Tennessee was 2007. That year, 44,000 acres burned.
So far in 2011, there have been 333 wildfires. Debris burning that got out of hand caused 158 of them, but the other 101 were determined to be arson cases. A total of 4,406 acres have burned.