Wildfire

Pell City Fire Chief Tim Kurzejeski says that fires around St. Clair County have either been extinguished or have been contained to the point of no further worry needed for county residents.

This comes days after forestry officials with the Alabama government reported that there were 24 wildfires spread throughout Alabama, with St. Clair, Escambia and Cullman counties seeing the majority of the burning.

Over 560 acres burned in St. Clair County while Escambia saw over 200 acres burn.

However, Kurzejeski says the fires have been contained and many have “quieted down.” The Pell City Fire Department has been helping out in the surrounding communities and throughout the county to provide assistance with the wildfires.

No new fires have been reported. Additionally, he is hopeful that the rainy weather will help calm things down even further.

As to why the fires started in the first place, Kurzejeski says that it is a combination of people burning debris as a part of spring cleaning along with dry weather conditions and high winds. However, there was never a “no burn” order issued by Forestry Commission.

While the fire departments across the county successfully fulfilled their jobs with containing and calming the wildfires, Kurzejeski still offered some advice for those who are choosing to burn in the county.

“Stay with the fire at all times. Start with a small pile and add on to it,” Kurzejeski said. “Do not burn on windy days and always keep some form of water source nearby.”