Consumers Urged To Follow Safe Burning Practices with Start of Tennessee’s Wildfire Season Oct. 15

NASHVILLE — With the official start of Tennessee’s wildfire season on Thursday, October 15, the Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance (TDCI) and the Tennessee State Fire Marshal’s Office reminds Tennesseans to always obtain a debris burn permit before burning leaves or debris and focus on safe burning practices all season in order to help prevent fires including wildfires.

“While Tennesseans are spending time outside this fall practicing socially distant activities, we remind everyone to always obtain a debris burn permit before burning leaves and incorporate basic fire safety measures into their outdoor agenda,” said TDCI Commissioner and State Fire Marshal Hodgen Mainda. “These simple safety steps can prevent a potentially tragic wildfire from ever occurring.”

From October 15 through May 15, anyone starting an open-air fire in Tennessee within 500 feet of a forest, grassland or woodland must by law secure a burn permit. The Tennessee Department of Agriculture’s Division of Forestry provides burn permits for leaf and brush piles online at no charge. For larger, broadcast burning, such as forestry, agricultural, and land clearing, call your local Division of Forestry burn permit phone number Mon. through Fri., 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. The online system for permits and phone numbers can be found at www.BurnSafeTN.org.

Permits are issued only when conditions are conducive to safe burning. If you live inside city limits, there may be additional restrictions. Check with your local municipality before you burn.

Before burning, follow these precautions to help ensure outdoor burning is conducted properly:

• Avoid burning on dry and/or windy days.
• Burn late in the day after the wind has quieted and humidity begins to increase, usually after 5:00 p.m. Check to see if weather changes are expected. Outdoor burning should be postponed if shifts in wind direction, higher winds or wind gusts.
• Before doing any burning, establish wide control lines down to bare mineral soil at least five feet wide around any burn barrels and even wider around brush piles and other piled debris to be burned. The larger the debris pile, the wider the control line needed to ensure that burning materials will not be blown or roll off the pile into vegetation outside the line.
• Stay with all outdoor fires until they are completely out.
• Keep water and hand tools ready in case your fire should attempt to spread. If you burn in a burn barrel or other trash container, be sure it is equipped with a half-inch mesh screen or metal grid to keep burning material contained.
• Stay abreast of wildfire danger levels and heed warnings and burn bans.
• Be aware of where your smoke is going. Avoid burning when your smoke will be bothersome to neighbors or sensitive locations such as highways.

A list of materials that may not be burned can be found in the open burning guidelines from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation.

Burning without a permit is a Class C misdemeanor and is punishable by up to 30 days in jail and/or a fine. Wildfires caused by arson are a class C felony punishable by three to 15 years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines. Anyone with information about an ar-son should call the Arson Hotline (1-800-762-3017).

The Arson Hotline is a phone line dedicated to receiving information about suspicious and incendiary fires. It is answered 24 hours a day and you may remain anonymous when providing information. Cash awards, provided solely through the generous assistance of the Tennessee Advisory Committee on Arson (TACA), are offered for information leading to an arrest or conviction. To report illegal burning, call 1-888-891- TDEC.

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