COLUMBIA — The National Weather Service issued another red flag warning in Boone County early Wednesday morning. A red flag warning means that critical fire weather conditions are currently occurring or will shortly.
The warning was issued because of high wind conditions, low humidity and low moisture in plants. This follows multiple warnings issued in the last week.
According to the Missouri Department of Conservation, more than 224 wildfires covering more than 15,500 acres across Missouri were reported last week.
Boone County Fire Protection District Assistant Chief Gale Blomenkamp said Boone County is in its natural cover fire season.
“Unlike the western part of the United States, this is our dry season,” Blomenkamp said.
The fire protection district responded to more than 30 calls on Friday alone last week when mid-Missouri saw strong winds — a call volume Blomenkamp said was abnormal.
The number of calls has not overwhelmed Boone County Fire up to this point, Blomenkamp said.
“It’s hard to take care of all of those calls at one time, but we managed it,” he said. “Everything was fine, and there were no injuries.”
Blomenkamp told KOMU 8 there are no plans to initiate a burn ban in Boone County at this time.
As far as staying alert, Blomenkamp urges residents to check the fire jurisdiction’s social media and other pages to have a good idea on the fire weather conditions before burning.
Fire protection measures across mid-Missouri
The Lake Ozark Fire Protection District on Tuesday established a burn ban that will remain in effect until April 1, unless the district deems it necessary to extend the ban.
“The current forecasted temperatures, wind conditions, humidity levels and moisture content of ground cover make opening burning extremely hazardous,” the fire protection district wrote in a news release.
The city of Sedalia also issued a burn ban until further notice.
