At Least 2 More Days of Very High Wildfire Risk

As we’ve seen all this month, the high temperatures, absence of snow and high winds mean a very high wildfire risk.

And that continued this afternoon.

The DNRE’s Upper Peninsula fire incident command center is in Harvey.

They responded to a small fire in Menominee County at a Christmas tree nursery, but it didn’t pose much trouble.

However, it shouldn’t be until the weekend that the severe danger subsides.

Duty officer Robert Ziel says Friday night and Saturday look like they’ll be cooler with a decent chance of some rain.

But he says until that rolls around, the wildfire danger should continue to be extremely high with all the exposed dead grass and other vegetation.

The vast majority of wildfires are caused by people, rather than by some sort of natural accident like lightning.

The DNRE suggests composting or using a wood chipper as safer choices for yard waste than burning it.

But there’s not just a safety reason.

There’s an economic one.

Anyone who burns outdoor debris and has the fire get out of control is responsible for the cost of putting out the blaze.