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Texas A&M Forest Service warns of increased wildfire danger
Dormant fire season takes place in the winter. It usually affects the Central to Western half of the state. It's something the Texas A&M Forest Service watches every year.
AUSTIN, Texas - The Texas A&M Forest Service is warning of increased wildfire danger due to dry and windy conditions.
Dormant fire season takes place in the winter. It usually affects the Central to Western half of the state. It's something the Texas A&M Forest Service watches every year.
The incoming cold fronts aren't helping the drought.
"These cold fronts are dry. They're not carrying any precipitation with them. What they are bringing with them is high winds and very low relative humidity," said Walter Flocke, Wildland Urban Interface Coordinator at Texas A&M Forest Service.
There's a lot of dead grass on the ground, especially after the hard freeze in December.
"Those are susceptible to burn now, so any ignition in these conditions could cause a rapid-spreading wildfire," Flocke said.
Temperature isn't the only factor.
"Really the most important factor is how much moisture is in our fuel, like our dry grass and the wind speed," Flocke said.
Since Jan. 1, 2023, the Forest Service has responded to 15 fires, burning 1,065 acres.
"We are always at the ready," Flocke said.
Prevention is key.
"Here in Texas, 9 out of 10 wildfires are human-caused, so it's really important to prevent that ignition source from happening, especially on days like this," Flocke said.
Avoid open burns or anything that can make a spark, like welding on days with high wind and low humidity. Also, make sure your trailer chains aren't dragging.
As far as how long the increased risk will last, Flocke says, "the forecasts are still not looking great for bringing a widespread wetting rain to central Texas. We are seeing some increase in moisture on Sunday, but not a huge relief. We don't really see any rain chance until the later half of next week. So, we can expect to see moderate to high fire danger going into this holiday weekend and extending into parts of next week. Beyond that, the outlook is kind of uncertain. This drought is continuing. We don't have the widespread wetting rain that we need to really stop this fire danger entirely."