Sarasota officials issue recreational burn ban as dry weather continues
A recreational burn ban has been issued in Sarasota County due to dry weather conditions, county officials announced Wednesday.
It is unknown how long the ban will last, but Sarasota County Fire Chief Michael Regnier said in a press conference Wednesday morning it will be in effect until conditions change.
Until then, only cooking fires are allowed. No campfires or other recreational fires will be permitted.
"Any time we go into a recreational burn ban, we're looking at conditions so if somebody doesn't adhere to our rules, that could start a fire and it could grow into something that could burn homes and get people injured," Regnier said.
The National Weather Service three-day history shows no precipitation at the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport since April 1. Spectrum Bay News 9 meteorologists reported Tuesday that the airport has seen just 5.39 inches of rainfall this year, about four inches less than normal for this time of year.
No rain is predicted in the NWS forecast for Sarasota until Saturday, when meteorologists call for a 40 percent chance of showers after 2 p.m., though the day is expected to be mostly sunny. The area gets more chances at seeing rainfall through the weekend and into early next week, with a 20 percent to 40 percent chance of showers through Tuesday.
"We're in a very severe drought within Sarasota County," Regnier said. "We just want to make sure we're ahead of the situation."
As of Tuesday, the Observed Fire Danger Index for Sarasota County was high, according to the Florida Forest Service. The index estimates the potential for a fire to start and require suppression.
The county was a 522 on the Keetch-Byram Drought Index scale Tuesday. The scale, which ranges from zero to 800, estimates the dryness of the soil and duff layers.
"When it's above 500 in that index, everything is very dry, tinder conditions. Things can start very rapidly, can progress very rapidly, so a small fire can get large very quickly," Regnier said.
In addition to the dry conditions, debris remaining from Hurricane Irma remains a concern for firefighters.
"Out in areas that are acreage, there's a lot of dead vegetation that could burn," Regnier said.
In March, State Wildland firefighters responded to nine wildfires in Sarasota County that burned 55 acres. There have been 1,189 wildfires in Florida since the first of the year which have burned 78,921 acres as of April 1, according to the FFS.
The KBDI drought scale index measures Manatee County at 464 while the Fire Danger Index showed Manatee at a moderate risk as of Tuesday.
Manatee County public safety officials have no plans, as of Wednesday morning, to declare a recreational burn ban for the county, said county spokesman Nick Azzara. However, he added, county officials are speaking regularly with the Florida Forestry Division.
This story was originally published April 4, 2018 at 9:10 AM with the headline "Sarasota officials issue recreational burn ban as dry weather continues."