Due to existing extremely dry conditions, the Town of Drumheller, in its capacity as Local Fire Authority and pursuant to the Fire Bylaw 04.07, is issuing a fire ban with respect to open air fires.
The ban applies to all open air fires, including fires for the purposes of recreation in non approved containers, burning weeds, grass, leaves, and the burning of coal, straw, and/or other materials for the thawing of ground.
The fire ban also includes fire pits, outdoor fireplaces, and stationary barbecues that burn combustible materials, such as briquettes.
Barbecues using natural gas and propane are not affected by the ban.
The fire ban took effect on Monday, April 23, at 1 p.m. and will remain until further notice.
“Until we get a good soaking rain the fire ban will remain in place,” said Fire Chief, Bill Bachynski.
The fire ban comes despite a recent snowfall and rain last week.
“We’ve had high winds and record breaking temperatures, so it’s dried out worse than it was before the moisture came,” said Bachynski.
The dry conditions have resulted in an above average number of grass fires.
“It’s extremely dry out and there have been a number of grass fires due to the dryness,” said Bachynski. “In the past month we’ve had more grass fires than we have had in previous years,”
The ban includes all properties contained within the municipal boundaries of Drumheller.
