LITTLE ROCK, Ark – The current heat wave is raising fire dangers in Arkansas and leading county officials to take action.
Sevier and Arkansas counties are the latest to issue burn bans, which have now been set for 58 of the 75 counties in the Natural State.
Burn bans, 11 a.m. July 18
The burn bans cover most of the northern and western sections of the state, stretching as far south as Jefferson County in central Arkansas and Little River County in the west. St. Francis County in eastern Arkansas remains something of an island, surrounded by burn-ban counties.
Burn bans are issued by county judges. A week ago, 51 counties were under a burn ban as the heat wave covering the state led to dry conditions and attendant risk.
The full list of counties with burn bans as of 10 a.m. July 18 includes:
Arkansas CountyBaxter CountyBenton CountyBoone CountyCarroll CountyClay CountyCleburne CountyColumbia CountyConway CountyCraighead CountyCrawford CountyCrittenden CountyCross CountyDallas CountyFaulkner CountyFranklin CountyFulton CountyGarland CountyGreene CountyHempstead CountyHoward CountyIndependence CountyIzard CountyJackson CountyJefferson CountyJohnson CountyLafayette CountyLawrence CountyLee CountyLogan CountyLonoke CountyMadison CountyMarion CountyMiller CountyMississippi CountyMonroe CountyMontgomery CountyNevada CountyNewton CountyOuachita CountyPerry CountyPike CountyPoinsett CountyPolk CountyPope CountyPrairie CountyPulaski CountyRandolph CountyScott CountySearcy CountySebastian CountySevier CountySharp CountyStone CountyVan Buren CountyWashington CountyWhite CountyWoodruff CountyYell County
Arkansas Forestry Commission recommends checking with the local county judge’s office before any fires. Each county has a slightly different requirement for meeting burn bans, some of which have zero-tolerance, while others allow, for example, outdoor grilling in approved areas.
An increase in the level of wildfire danger has also led to additional counties being moved from the moderate designation to the high-risk rating.
The high-risk status was originally limited to northwest Arkansas last week but now also belongs to counties in the southwest corner of the state, including Miller, Hempstead, Lafayette, Columbia, Nevada, Ouachita, and Union counties.
Wildfire Danger, 11 a.m. July 18
All other areas of the state that are not under high risk remain under moderate risk of wildfire danger.
