National Weather Services Is Warning The Public Of A Elevated Fire Danger This Weekend

MADISON COUNTY - The National Weather Service St. Louis is warning the public of an Elevated Fire Danger for Friday and Saturday.

Today with the dry conditions and the increasing winds people should avoid outdoor burning. The winds will be between 10-15 mph with gusts up from 25-30 mph.

For Saturday, the National Weather Service issued a Fire Weather Watch. The Weather Service said Saturday is the greatest chance for fires to get out of control. The winds for Saturday will be between 15-25 mph with gusts reaching 40 mph.

Wood River Fire Department issued a statement telling Wood River residents that no burning will be allowed on Saturday due to the conditions.

The Bethalto Fire Department also said no burning would be allowed until further notice.

“Still due to the unfavorable weather conditions and the national weather service still having our area in a fire weather watch we will not be issuing any burn permits for the weekend and a burn ban will be put into place. We will re-evaluate this on Monday 10/19/2020 in the morning. Any questions please let us know.” Bethalto Fire Department said.

Edwardsville Fire Chief James Whiteford said earlier in the week that the Fire Weather Watch is something that residents need to take seriously.

Carlinville Fire Protection District Chief Jess McKee said: "We ask no one burns anything until we can get rain! Eve a small campfire burning yard waste could turn catastrophic in seconds. We appreciate our community support and help! Please continue to help us by not burning in the coming days."

On Wednesday several fields, grass, and brush fires broke out all over the area due to the same conditions that are for this weekend. The fires kept the area firefighters extremely busy.

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