BLM places fire restrictions

The Bureau of Land Management has followed in the county’s footsteps and placed stage one fire restrictions on its public lands in Crook, Weston and Niobrara counties.

“Last summer’s moisture and cool weather brought an abundance of grass and other fine fuels to public lands within the district,” says High Plains District Fire Management Officer Craig Short.

“This, in combination with the lack of moisture and warm, windy weather we’re experiencing, has created an environment susceptible to wildfires.”

It is now prohibited to building, maintain, attend or use a fire or campfire on BLM lands.

However, certain exceptions exist. It is still permitted to do so within agency-provided fire grates at developed recreation sites, within fully enclosed stoves with a quarter-inch spark arrester type screen, within fully enclosed grills or in stoves using pressurized liquid or gas.

Smoking is now only permitted in enclosed vehicles or buildings, developed recreation sites or within an area at least three feet in diameter that’s barren or cleared of flammable materials.

Chainsaws must have USDA- or SAE-approved spark arresters and be used in the presence of a chemical fire extinguisher of at least 8oz capacity and a round-point, 36-inch shovel.

A chemical pressurized fire extinguisher is also necessary to use a welder or an acetylene or other torch with an open flame, and this can only be done in cleared areas at least ten feet in diameter.

Year-round fire restrictions also still apply. Fireworks, discharge of a firearm using incendiary or tracer ammo and burning of any tire, wire, magnesium or other hazardous or explosive material are all prohibited and off-road vehicles must be equipped with a properly installed spark arrester.

The use or discharge of any kind of explosives, incendiary devices, pyrotechnic devices or exploding targets is also not allowed.

As a reminder, the county is also under fire restrictions and will remain so until further notice.

Fire Warden Charlie Harrison requested the restrictions be put in place last week, telling the county commissioners that more Wyoming acres burned in February than in the entirety of 2023.

These restrictions prohibit the discharge of fireworks and the use of exploding target devices, as well as outdoor fires in unimproved areas, and require that outdoor fires be within fire rings. Trash fires are permitted between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m. in containers provided with spark arresters and within a 15-foot cleared area.

Charcoal fires in enclosed grills; the use of acetylene cutting torches and electric arc welders; and propane and open fire branding activities must occur in 15-foot cleared areas.