Commissioners under fire for burn ban

Young County Commissioners split on whether to lift the burn ban on Aug. 29 after a spate of much-needed rain and constituents clamoring for the chance to burn brush piles and light homecoming bonfires. The commissioners took no action after much discussion and a tie vote on lifting the ban, which has been in place since June as area firefighters battled extreme drought conditions. Precinct 1 Commissioner Stacy Creswell voted no. “We’ve got places south of town where people don’t have cattle … and [have] grass that’s waist high, and brush piles they want to burn,” he said. “There’s no safe way to burn that no matter how you do it.” Precinct 2 Commissioner Matt Pruitt abstained from the vote, joking that he was “scared” to vote because of mounting pressure from both sides. “Newcastle Fire Department says they don’t want to lift it,” he said, noting that the town’s high school students were equally adamant about having a Homecoming bonfire the following weekend. “I just want to make the right decision for my constituents,” Mr. Pruitt said.

County Judge John Bullock said the last time the court lifted the ban briefly in April “we had 25 new fires.” He said dove hunting season, which opened Sept. 1, created new fire hazards from hunters drinking, camping, and shooting. Precinct 3 Commissioners Stacey Rogers and Precinct 4 Commissioner Jimmy Wiley voted to lift the ban, citing last week’s forecast for rain and a Farmer’s Almanac prediction for a cold and wet winter. “If you wait a week, it’ll be all right,” Mr. Rogers said. Judge Bullock, who voted no, remarked that county code allowed him to lift the ban unilaterally, but said he was not inclined to make a decision on his own. “You can do it. We won’t say nothing about it – not until later,” Mr. Creswell quipped. The 90-day ban is set to lift on Sept. 26.