Fire hazard persists despite recent rain, snow

WASHINGTON — A red flag burn warning from the National Weather Service on Friday sparked some confusion in the dozens of southern and Eastern Iowa counties it affected, coming on the heels of considerable snow melt and frost thawing that made for muddy roads and wet soil.

The advisory means fires can spread dangerously fast, a fact demonstrated in area emergency response records late last week with six fires reported around Washington County on Feb. 28, the day the warning was issued.

While NWS advisories don’t ban outdoor open flames, local emergency response officials say it’s about as clear a warning as one could get against burning trash, fields, firewood, or anything else in the countryside. The warnings are issued to areas experiencing a mix of windy, warm and low-humidity conditions.

“It’s pretty much a guarantee, if you light a fire today it’s going to spread, and it’s going to spread faster than you think possible,” Washington County Emergency Management Coordinator Marissa Reisen said in an interview on Friday.

An extremely close call in rural Riverside Friday proved the point. Firefighters said an electrical transformer blew out above a ditch near the intersection of Spruce Avenue and Riverside Road, where the sparks lit up dead grass in a blaze that spread quickly into a nearby field and toward a handful of buildings downwind, including a few homes.

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With some mutual response departments already fighting a house fire in Washington at the time, Riverside Fire Chief Chad Smothers said firefighters managed to put out the flames just about a foot from the nearest home, with the help of some farmers in the area.

The rest of the blaze spread out over about 20-30 acres of cropland, taking crews around four hours to extinguish in full, as the dry grass combined with wet mud made for a challenging firefight.

“They got it contained within about an hour, but with around 30 large round hay bales burning, they actually had to use some heavy equipment from local community members, farmers that showed up on the scene,” Smothers said. “The brush trucks that we use were getting stuck in different portions of the field, so they were able to pull those guys out quickly and get them back in service.”

Scattered showers and a winter storm since last week’s advisory have improved conditions for the moment, but officials say they expect more red flag warnings on and off for the next few months, despite the momentary reprieve.

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While rain and snow in the first few months of the year may help future vegetation grow, dead grass and dormant plants don’t take up much of the moisture below until later in the season, according to firefighters.

“The bottom is maybe soft below, due to the ground soil, but the vegetation on top is really dry,” Smothers said. “We get a couple good, warm sunny days, couple that with some wind, and we’ll have the same sort of fire conditions until things green up.”

Ainsworth Fire Chief Waylon Schultz said Friday’s red flag warning was fairly commonplace for the region leading into April, although it came earlier than normal this season.

He reminds community members that local fire departments often offer planned assistance and standbys for controlled burns, as farmers prepare their fields for planting.

“The lack of snowfall that we’ve had this year compared to other winters is why we’re having it earlier in the year,” he said. “March and April, it’s kind of our busy time of year as far as grass fires, so we probably will see a bit more of an uptick.”

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com