ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Some Central Florida counties are conducting prescribed, or controlled, burns, leading to visible smoke in the area.
Many people in Seminole County on Monday noticed smoke in the area. However, the Seminole County Fire Department said the wind brought over the smoke from Lake County where the prescribed burns were taking place.
The Florida Forest Service will conduct a 100-acre burn in Seminole State Forest in Lake County, south of Buck Run Drive, Tracy Canal and Lake Kathryn.
According to Lake County fire officials, prescribed burns help reduce the risk of uncontrolled wildfires by:
- Reducing excess fuel that can lead to dangerous wildfires
- Restoring forests by removing dead debris
- Returning vital nutrients to the soil
- Controlling invasive plant species
Orange County on Wednesday will conduct a 30-acre prescribed burn at Kelly Park in Apopka, which will create smoke that is visible from miles away. The burn was originally scheduled for Tuesday before it was canceled.
News 6 Chief Meteorologist Candace Campos said the smoke is visible from miles away because of high pressure.
“The same air that brings us the clear skies and the calm conditions and those chilly days we’ve had also brings sinking air,” she explained. “That’s why there’s no cloud cover. So, what happens is the fire burns, the smoke goes up into the atmosphere and starts spreading out because there’s almost like a lid on top of our atmosphere.”
Candace said the majority of central Florida is abnormally dry, which is not great but not the worst-case scenario.
‘We’ve been worse," Candace said. “And these fronts that we’ve been getting every couple of days or so they bring that kind of misty rain, some heavier downpours at times. It’s no surprise that firefighters are doing their prescribed burns because as the conditions are dry now, this is the opportunity before wildfire season starts.”
Fire officials call prescribed burns “one of the most versatile and cost-effective tools” to reduce fire risk and protect people, their homes, and the forest. Each year, landowners and agencies burn over 2.1 million acres on average, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
You can see a map of where burns by the Florida Forest Service are happening across the state here.
There is no need to call 911 if you see smoke, unless you see a column of it or an active fire.