What a difference a few weeks makes when it comes to the fall forest fire season. September found drought conditions in many sections of the Commonwealth and wildfires became a big concern. While October began with all the same signs, the atmosphere changed and rains dampened fire threats.
Kentucky Division of Forestry Fire Management Chief Brandon Howard said preparations were being made in early October to boost fire-fighting resources. “We were talking to our partners in Winchester, Kentucky interagency coordination center, they had some aerial resources that they had pre-positioned and we were making plans to utilize those, helicopters if we needed them and so forth, so we were gearing up, but now we’ve been able to ramp down quite a bit,” said Howard.
Although not as large or destructive as California wildfires, some parts of Kentucky saw many acres of rural lands consumed by wildfires in September.
Brandon Howard noted it’s possible a California call for help could reach Kentucky. But he said that probably wouldn’t happen until neighboring western states have provided firefighting assistance. “Once those resources begin to dwindle due to the amount of resource requests maybe California is asking for or the other state’s that there requesting are having fires of their own and can’t fulfill those resource orders, then they reach further. You know, for example, I believe last year California had to reach out to Australia to get some instant management people in to help.”
The fall forest fire season runs until mid-December. Howard says previous years have found November to still be a time to be on alert for wildland fires.?
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