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MENOMONEE FALLS -- Several communities in southeastern Wisconsin have issued burn bans as a result of dry, hot and breezy conditions. Fire officials say a slight breeze can provide fuel for a spark that can quickly become a dangerous fire.
"The wind we had (Monday) was 25-30 miles an hour, and that dries the surface of the ground -- takes the moisture right out of it," Karl Hornung with Shady Lane Greenhouse said.
With the moisture gone in the ground's surface, lawns dry out, and grass fires can easily spark. Crews battled a grass fire in Kewaskum on Sunday, June 17th, after a homeowner reportedly tried to burn a headboard outside. Officials say about an acre of property was burned and some of the home's siding.
Menomonee Falls Fire Chief Jeff Hevey said his department has joined several others in issuing a burning ban -- prohibiting all burning requiring a permit.
"It's so dry right now that if somebody's burning and the fire gets away from them, they're gonna try to put the fire out first because they don't want to be embarrassed by people coming to help them out, and by the time they call us their fire could be a third of an acre. On a day like today that is hot and slightly-windy, now you could be at an acre-and-a-half, or two acres that are on fire by the time we get there," Hevey said.
Hevey suggested property owners keep any grass near structures trimmed as much as possible. He also suggested that those clippings be collected, and not just mulched.
Hevey said ideally, if those clippings are on a compost site, the property owner should keep the compost site moist at least for this next stretch of weather.