Maryland is only a spark away from similar wildfires to those raging in the Los Angeles area of California. State Fire Supervisor Monte Mitchell, with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources? Forest Service, spoke with The Examiner about our risk.
How does Maryland prepare to attack or prevent large wildfires like those burning in California?
We do have potential for large wildfires like any other state, because right now we?re under drought conditions, which has caused an increased number of fires of the last several months.
What are the major risks or causes of fires in Maryland?
No. 1 is debris burning. People burning debris piles out in the open. We?re actually urging people not to burn any open fires until we get some significant rainfall. Even if we get a soaking like we?re expecting this week, that wouldn?t do it.
Our other main causes are arson, people setting fires intentionally, and equipment. You have a lot of farm equipment that puts out a lot of heat, and sometimes that sparks a fire.
You mentioned rain. Are we going to need more than a one-time soaking to improve conditions?
If it keeps up, with the cloud cover, for a couple of days, that would help.
Is there anything else you want to tell Marylanders about fire prevention?
The other vigilance that we?re asking is from recreational users. Whether it be campers, smokers or hunters, be very careful with any combustible-type materials they have, because any type of spark can ignite a fire. ?
