St. Lucie County Issues Burn Ban Due to Dry Conditions
St. Lucie County Public Safety officials, in conjunction with the St. Lucie County Fire District and Florida Forest Service, have implemented a county-wide burn ban effective immediately due to the extremely dry conditions.
The burn ban applies to all non-permitted, outside burning. Agricultural burning will be permitted on a case-by-case basis as authorized by the Florida Forest Service. The drought index for St. Lucie County is nearly 600 out of 800. An index reading higher than 550 is considered extremely dry. However, fire and forestry officials are fighting twice as many fires as they were this time last year.
“We are urging residents to use extreme caution and report any outside burning or fireworks to 9-1-1,” said St. Lucie County Public Safety Director Ron Parrish. “Our fire fighters along with the Florida Forest Service staff have done an excellent job of keeping St. Lucie County safe.”
Additionally motorists are asked to use extreme caution and avoid keeping vehicles parked with the motor running or driving over dry grassy areas.
As in previous years, the County will continue to monitor the situation on a daily basis and take additional steps as needed until the drought index is once again satisfactory. The last time St. Lucie County issued a county-wide burn ban was in the spring of 2011.
