County adopts burn ordinance

A state forestry official, alarmed by the frequency of brush fires started by yard waste burning in Jeff Davis County, sent word to the County Commission requesting the county take action to combat the problem.
In a called meeting Tuesday afternoon, the commissioners voted without opposition to require permits be obtained before hurning in hopes residences will heed the warning to stop the outbreak of runaway brush fires.
City, county and area firefighters, Forestry Commission firefighters, Hazlehurst Police, Jeff Davis Sheriff’s Department deputies, and a host of other emergency personnel congregated on Claxton Road Sunday afternoon for yet another runaway brush fire, this one consuming more than 200 acres of land.
The smoke from the huge fire in the northwestern area of the county was visible for miles around. Police and Sheriff’s Deputies were tasked with keeping curious members of the public away from Claxton Road, not only because of the danger the fire presented but also to keep people away so firefighters could do their work unencumbered by onlookers.
At the March meeting of the county commission, City-County Fire Chief/Emergency Management Agency Director Charles Wasdin detailed the widespread problem such fires have been causing, at least since January.
At Sunday afternoon’s fire, Jeff Davis County Forestry Unit Director Tommy Campbell explained why the problem has become so acute …. and it’s not just because of the dry weather and high winds.
“Hurricane Helene came through (in late August, 2024) and knocked down timber all over the county,” Campbell explained. “Now, we can’t push through it (all the fallen limbs and trees). And now it’s all dried up and it’s just fuel feeding the fires.”
The local forestry unit is uniquely equipped to contain runaway fires, using tractors with special equipment to dig firebreaks around fires to keep them from spreading. But, as Campbell pointed out, in many areas the abundance of fallen trees form barriers that the Forestry Department’s equipment can’t “push through.”
Campbell has decades of experience fighting forest fires, not only in Jeff Davis County, but also in areas across the country when the nation’s network for forest fire fighters mutually assist in other areas.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” Campbell said. “And I’ve fought fires all over the place. It’s not the size of the fires, it’s the frequency. There’s fires just about every day.”
Hopefully, the No-Burn order will shake some common sense into people who endanger themselves and others, not to mention huge portions of the county’s forests, by burning debris during this time of dry weather and almost daily high winds …. and the “fuel” standing by to power the runaway fires.