FIRE SAFETY FOR BACKYARD FUN

Fire in the grill, cooking hot dogs and burgers, is a welcome sight at the family cookout. But fire anywhere else can make your summer barbecue memorable for all the wrong reasons. To keep you and your family safe while grilling, follow these Grilling Safely tips...

1. Propane and charcoal BBQ grills should only be used outdoors.

2. The grill should be placed well away from the home, deck railings and out from under eaves and overhanging branches.

3. Keep children and pets away from the grill area.

4. Keep your grill clean by removing grease or fat buildup from the grills and in trays below the grill.

5. Never leave your grill unattended.

BACKYARD FIRE PITS

Fire pits are a fantastic addition to any homestead or rural backyard. They are attractive, inexpensive to use and help to extend the use of your yard. But when you use a fire pit you are literally playing with fire! Careless misuse could not only set your own house ablaze, but also could spark a grass fire and endanger others nearby.

      Positioning Your Fire Pit

Whether you are using a portable fire pit or planning to install a permanent one, positioning is key to safety:

• Make sure the fire pit is, at minimum, 10 feet away from any structure or neighboring yard—25 feet is preferable.
• Do not position a fire pit under a covered porch or low hanging tree branches.
• Always place a fire pit on a non-flammable surface, such as patio blocks or concrete.
• Do not put a fire pit on a wooden deck or directly on grass.

      Preparing Your Fire Pit

• Clear all flammable materials away from your fire pit before using it. Five feet is a good distance. This “break” in vegetation will help prevent an escaped fire from spreading.
• Piling dirt or rocks around the pit will also help prevent any fire on the ground from escaping.
• The fire pit should be at least 6 inches deep at the center and 2 feet across, to help keep the embers and flames contained.

Lighting Your Fire Pit

• Always check wind direction before you light a fire and remove anything flammable downwind of the pit.
• If it is too windy, do not light your fire pit.
• Do not use lighter fluid to light a fire pit; instead, a commercial fire starter stick with kindling on top is ideal.
• Do not use any flammable fluids (gasoline, lighter fluid, etc.) to light or relight fires.

We use chemicals every day around our homes and in our places of work. Chemicals can be helpful agents in fueling our vehicles, painting our homes and appliances, removing paint, fertilizing our gardens and farms, killing weeds, killing bugs and pests, cleaning, lubricating and preparing parts, disinfecting and cleaning bathrooms and kitchens, and many other useful purposes. Businesses and industries use chemicals to produce their products or provide their services. In Coffey County, there are a number of businesses and industries that use and/or produce chemicals. These businesses include farm fertilizer services, auto painting/servicing, pest control services, oil production and producing electricity, among other industries.

Because chemicals are used all throughout our lives, it would be no surprise to find them around every part of our surroundings, but we may not be aware of their presence. They can be in basements, garages, kitchens and bathrooms of our homes. They can be in the businesses and industries that operate in our communities. Coffey County has major state and interstate highways and rail lines running through it. So chemicals are transported on these roadways and rail lines throughout the county. We may find chemicals in various containers or closed systems such as bags, bottles, cans, pails, pipelines, tanks, etc.

Chemicals are useful items in our lives and can be safely used, handled and stored if done in a controlled or common sense manner. When chemicals are not controlled or are lost from their closed systems, we must be prepared to act in a manner to limit our exposure to the hazards from their spill or release.

What to do if you observe a chemical spill/release

If you observe a chemical spill or release, either driving down a road or looking out your window at home, report the spill/release by dialing 9-1-1. The 9-1-1 operator will dispatch the proper response agency.

What to do in a chemical emergency

A chemical emergency can occur from a transportation source, such as trucks or railcars, or from businesses or industries in the area. If a chemical emergency occurs in your neighborhood, you will be notified by local officials using a combination of radio, television, door-to-door contact. If your health and/or safety is in danger you will either be advised to shelter-in-place or to evacuate.

How could a release of radioactive material happen in Woodson County?

An accident involving radioactive materials is possible anywhere radioactive materials are used or transported. These materials can be found in medical, industrial, research, or construction activities. Kansas Department of Health and Environment or the Nuclear Regulatory Commission must license companies using a radioactive source. A transportation accident involving someone hauling radioactive material is very possible. In Woodson County, highways, and railroads are used to transport these materials.

In the event a foreign country were to attack the United States using nuclear weapons, Woodson County could receive radioactive fallout, or be a target for attack.

If a hazardous radiation situation occurs, persons from local emergency groups, Woodson County Emergency Management, and numerous volunteers would be called in without delay. These responders would check for a radioactive release and contamination to personnel or vehicles, inform the public on what actions to take, and work to protect the health and safety of everyone involved.

Plans and procedures are in place to cover specific details regarding responsibilities and response action for Woodson County in the event of a nuclear accident.

For more information on this subject, call Woodson County Emergency Management at (620) 625-8605 ext 8.

Woodson County is prepared to help Coffey County with any issues that may arise with Wolf Creek. We have procedures in place for response help in the event of an emergency. For additional information to use during Wolf Creek emergencies, visit www.wcnoc.com.

Candles may be pretty to look at but they are a cause of home fires — and home fire deaths. Remember, a candle is an open flame, which means that it can easily ignite anything that can burn.

• Blow out all candles when you leave the room or go to bed. Avoid the use of candles in the bedroom and other areas where people may fall asleep.
• Keep candles at least 12 inches away from anything that can burn.
• Never leave a child alone in a room with a burning candle.
• Keep matches and lighters up high and out of children’s reach, in a locked cabinet.
• Consider using flameless candles in your home. They look and smell like real candles.
• Use candle holders that are sturdy, and won’t tip over easily.
• Put candle holders on a sturdy, uncluttered surface.
• Light candles carefully. Keep your hair and any loose clothing away from the flame.
• Don’t burn a candle all the way down — put it out before it gets too close to the holder or container.
• Never use a candle if oxygen is used in the home.
• Have flashlights and battery-powered lighting ready to use during a power outage. Never use candles.

• December is the peak time of year for home candle fires.
• Roughly one-third of home candle fires started in the bedroom.
• More than half of all candle fires start when things that can burn are too close to the candle.

Information obtained from the Kansas State Fire Marshall website @  https://firemarshal.ks.gov/agency-resources/education/candle-safety

Prescribed or controlled burning is a technique sometimes used in forest management, farming, or prairie restoration.

Prescribed or controlled burning is a technique sometimes used in forest management, farming, or prairie restoration. Fire is a natural part of both forest and grassland ecology and controlled fire can be a tool for farmers/ranchers in our area to safely reduce excessive amounts of dead vegetation, brush, shrubs and trees.

A controlled burn is called that for a reason, it takes preparation, knowledge of the weather conditions, a crew, tools, equipment, having water tanks available and on standby at the burn site. Burning pastures or woodlands should never be a light-it-and-leave-it method. Fire must be watched and controlled. Weather conditions have a huge impact on burning, too wet and you won’t get a good burn, too dry and the fire will spread fast, too windy and fire and get out of control in a matter of minutes. Burning is not something you do when winds are 30 miles per hour! Preparations for burning include establishing firebreaks around the area to be burned, doing back burns to establish a stopping point for a fire. Fires should not be lit when the weather service issues red flag warnings, or if the Board of County Commission has issued a Burn Ban.

Controlled burning stimulates the germination of some desirable vegetation, thus encouraging the new growth of native vegetation and maintaining the many plant and animal species whose habitats depend on periodic fire for renewal. Fire removes thatch that shades new growth. Minerals from dead weeds and grass are returned to the soil when burnt, ready to be used by new growth for nutrition. Removing dead thatch improves spring grazing for cattle in pastures, fresh is always better.

Another consideration is the issue of fire prevention.

When wildfires occur they can be fueled by old growth or downed trees or leaves in areas that have not been burned recently. Each year dried grasses, additional leaf litter and dropped branches increase the likelihood of a hot and uncontrollable fire. Controlled burning of pastures and woodlands can reduce the fuel a wildfire would have.  

In Woodson County landowners need to contact the Woodson County Sheriff’s Office to obtain a county burn permit. When ready to burn the landowner needs to contact the Sheriff’s Office with the time and place of the burn and then inform when the burn is over so if reported later authorities will know that it is not controlled.

Obtaining a permit may not limit liability if the fire burns out of control, NEVER walk away from a burning fire!

The Office of the State Fire Marshal and Kansas Interagency Wildfire Council offer the following tips and best practices for helping farmers and ranchers to have safe and successful prescribed burns of their fields and pastures, ensuring a burn doesn’t become a wildfire:

• Know all state and local fire restrictions. Check with county officials who are charged with deciding whether burning is permissible based on local conditions.
• Notify neighbors as a courtesy prior to burning.
• Postpone the burn if unsure of the fuel and weather conditions.
• Check the weather forecast, not just for the day you will be burning, but for a couple days afterward as well to avoid “holdover” escapes from burns that were completed and forgotten about a day or more prior.
• Have adequate resources and equipment available to prevent escaped fires.
• Consider smoke management to avoid unsafe roads and air quality conditions.
• Do not burn to the ends of the field. Setting boundaries, “back burning” and keeping the fire off of fence rows will prevent out-of-control burns.

Per Kansas law, open burning operation conditions must adhere to detailed guidelines as specified in Kansas Administrative Regulations 28-19-645, 28-19-646, 28-19-647 & 28-19-648 (view regulations here). Violation of these regulations is subject to penalty. Woodson County Board of Commissioners may impose stricter guidelines through the adoption of resolutions.