VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Fires are a necessity in Florida. They help recycle forests, while promoting a healthy ecosystem. But in the drier months, those same fires can threaten people and their homes. The best tool in fighting those fires is with fire, during controlled burning season, Florida Forest Service officials say.
“The more acreage we burn, not only benefits the ecosystem, that’s another area we don’t have to worry about a wildfire,” Ranger Camaron Greenlund said.
Before any fire is set, Greenlund checks all the necessary weather conditions that make up about 90 percent of the prescription burn requirements.
"We want it to be dry enough to burn, but we still want to have the rainfall to keep up with it, so we can continue to burn through the season." Greenlund said.
If all requirements are met, the fire ignites starting with the base line.
"It’s a fire we light into the winds, it’s a very low intensity, slow moving fire that acts like a buffer that cannot burn,” Greenlund said about the process. “We then start lighting smaller spot fires."
These fires then travel gradually burning the surface along the way.
"Prescribed burning is a good learning tool because fire acts the same way during a wildfire" Volusia County forest area supervisor William Raulerson said.
The 2016 dry season came strong and fast, limiting the amount of prescribed burns. In Volusia County, forestry officials said that last year they were only able to burn 500 acres burned compared to their goal of 5,000. This year is looking much more promising, because of Hurricane Irma.
“We had a lot of wet areas that we can take advantage of this year, which it was the complete opposite of last year," Greenlund said.
Although the rain has been helpful this burn season, debris from Irma poses an obstacle this year for firefighters.
"It could cause a control issue. If the fire gets into the dead tree and shoots from the top it can throw embers across the line and it could continue to smoke for days," Greenlund said.
Weather permitting, the Florida forestry in Volusia County are set to reach their goal this year of 5,000 acres within the next two weeks.