Wildfire conditions continue to pose a threat to the West Texas and Panhandle areas as temperatures rise and wind speeds increase with little to no humidity.
The Levelland Fire Department has responded to multiple calls regarding community members open burning within the city limits of Levelland. Citizens are reminded that open burning is a violation of Article 5.800 Open Burning.
Article 5.801 states no person shall kindle, ignite, or maintain, or permit the kindling, ignition, or maintaining of any open burning within the city limits, except in accordance with Sections 307 and 308 of the International Fire Code adopted pursuant to Article 3.100 of this code, except as hereinafter provided.
Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 5.801, during periods covered by resolutions duly adopted by the city council, all open or outdoor burning, other than in gas or charcoal grills or indoor fireplaces, shall be prohibited. As used in this section.
Any person violating any section, or part thereof, of this article shall, upon conviction, be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a fine in accordance with Section 1.106 of this code.
According to Texas A&M Agrilife Extension, open burning can be an efficient method of waste disposal. However, burning is also an extremely hazardous practice that should be performed carefully. Texas laws and administrative regulations govern open burning, including open burning for agricultural purposes.
The Texas Health & Safety Code (§382.018) gives the Texas Commission on Environmental Health and Quality (TCEQ) the authority to promulgate burning rules, within some defined parameters. It directs the commission to authorize the burning of “trees, brush, grass, leaves, branch trimmings, or other plant growth” as waste, provided that this burning occurs on land where the waste was generated, and the burn is done by the owner of the property or someone authorized to do so by the owner (Tex. Health & Safety Code §§382.018(b)(1&2)). This does not mean that only these items may be burned, it just means that the commission cannot prohibit these items from being burned.
The commission cannot subject burns of trees, brush, grass, leaves, branch trimmings, or other plant growth to its individual approval, nor can it only authorize burns when there are no other alternatives to disposal of the waste (Tex. Health & Safety Code §382.018(c)(1&2)).
Outdoor burning of waste may be done at any time at a site designated for burning of waste from specific residential properties located outside a municipality in counties where less than 50,000 people reside if a firefighter (e.g., professional or volunteer) acting under the authority of the fire department is observing, provided the waste came from a site from which the burn area is designated to accept waste (Tex. Health & Safety Code §382.018 (d)(1&2)).
The TCEQ sets forth the following general rules on authorized burns. According to the commission, burning must abide by the following time and weather conditions.
Burning may not be started earlier than an hour after sunrise; it also must be concluded on the same day by an hour before sunset at the latest. A responsible party must monitor the burning at all times it is actively burning. Once the fire is residual or smoldering, the smoke must be extinguished if it potentially could be a nuisance or create a traffic hazard. The extent of the burn area may not increase after the active burn phase.
Burning may not be started if wind is supposed to be less than six mph or more than 23 mph while the burn is being conducted. Burning is prohibited during “periods of actual or predicted persistent low-level atmospheric temperature inversions” (30 Texas Admin. Code §111.219(6)).
In regard to controlled burns for individuals outside the city limits within Hockley County, people are encouraged to contact their local fire department and notify them of burns that would be taking place. In turn, this would establish a solid line of communication with the burner in case calls are received from others regarding a fire or if the controlled burn becomes uncontrolled.
Currently, there are 73 counties under a burn ban while the remaining 181 counties are not. Counties under a burn ban include: Lamb County, Bailey County, Cochran County, Yoakum County and Garza County. Citizens can find counties under burn bans by utilizing the Texas A&M Forest Service Texas County Burn Ban Map. The map includes the date of establishing the burn ban along with the days elapsed under the ban.
Much of the Panhandle and West Texas area is valued between the moderate and high fire danger rating. Community members are encouraged to sign up for Hockley County Emergency Management Notifications as Red Flag Warnings are a part of the notifications and other grass fire updates.
Residents and business owners can register for weather related and emergency notifications to stay informed and alerted in case of emergencies. Residents are encouraged to go to RUAWARE.US to register for Hockley County Alerts.
Business Owners in Hockley County can go to https://r.iinfo. com/hockleycobizcontact for business alerts.
Also, individuals are encouraged to check their wireless device has the “emergency alerts by location” turned on. That will allow notifications to come through similar to the amber alerts but are initiated locally for emergency situations such as tornado warning or dynamic police incidents.
Individuals should not assume that getting amber alerts to their phone their settings are correct for the notification; people will have to allow location alerts. What location alert means is it will send the message based off geographical boundaries; the alert can be isolated to a specific area for only those within the preset boundary to receive the notification. This is a voluntary activation as amber alert system is not voluntary.
All alerts through this system come from local officials; never spam, solicitation calls, text messages or emails. All of the text messages will come from the same number so it can be saved in contacts to be easily recognized.
The phone calls will come through with the office of emergency management number 806-568-5487 so it can be saved and easily recognizable as well.