SpringfieldNewsSun.com

Urbana, Ohio — It can be as simple as someone tossing a lit cigarette on the ground or a passing train sending up a spark.

For firefighters in rural areas, it's grassfire season. During March and April, the dry conditions and breezes that accompany the arrival of Spring create ideal conditions for these quick-spreading blazes. This season has been particularly bad.

Just this month, there have already been at least 66 brushfires in Champaign County. That's an average of more than two a day. In Clark County this month dispatchers received 44 reports of brushfires. By way of comparison, Clark County dispatchers have received a total of 62 for the year so far.

"It seems to travel in spurts. Every several years we get times like this," said Captain Mark Keller of the Urbana Fire Division. "For the most part, the past couple of years have been quiet as far as brushfires go."

Keller and other firefighters say most of the fires this season are the result of people taking advantage of the warm weather to dispose of brush and fallen tree limbs by burning them. Winds have been carrying burning embers from those fires to dry grassy fields where they quickly catch flame.

One such fire in Urbana quickly spread through 30 acres, near the intersection of Middle-Urbana and East Dallas roads on Tuesday, March 17. It took firefighting personnel and equipment from five departments to put it out.

"It is so dry and with everything so brown this time of the year, (a brushfire) can get away from you real quick with any kind of breeze," said German Township Fire Chief Tim Holman.

His department responded to four brushfires on Wednesday, March 18, the largest of which also occurred in Champaign County and took firefighters from four departments two hours to put out.

Ohio's open burning regulations allow for burning agricultural waste under some conditions, such as when the fire is located at least 1,000 feet away from the nearest neighboring residence. A permit from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency is required for other kinds of burns, such as those in restricted areas like municipalities.

But the fires themselves don't recognize EPA regulations or permits – as Holman is quick to point out. "A permit is not going to prevent a fire from spreading," he said, adding that a common-sense rule of thumb is not to burn brush and other yard waste when it's windy out.

Keller has more straightforward advice, "I just recommend that people don't burn until we get some decent rain."

More detailed information on Ohio EPA open-burning regulations are available at the agency's official Web site.