Commissioners impose burn ban in Comanche County

Comanche County is under a burn ban for the next two weeks.

Comanche County commissioners made the decision Monday on the recommendation of Emergency Management Director Clint Langford, who said the county now meets the state criteria for imposing and enforcing a burn ban. Most notably, most of Comanche County is within the Severe Drought category, with the southwestern tip of the county one step up, in the Extreme Drought category.

That Extreme Drought designation also has expanded, now including portions of Comanche, Cotton, Tillman, Jackson, Harmon, Greer and Kiowa counties. The remainder of Southwest Oklahoma is in the Severe Drought category. Tillman, Jackson, Greer and Harmon counties also are in burn bans, according to the Oklahoma Forestry Services.

It’s the first time since September 2022 that commissioners approved the designation for Comanche County.

State law specifies that commissioner designations are allowed when they proclaim that extreme fire danger exists, meaning severe, extreme or exceptional drought conditions exist within the county, as determined by the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration, and no more than one-half inch of precipitation is forecast for the next three days. The resolution that commissioners passed Monday specifies extreme fire danger exists in Comanche County.

Langford said he and the chiefs of volunteer fire departments across Comanche County have been discussing the issue for weeks, monitoring weather conditions and the number of fires in the county as they weighed the decision to recommend a burn ban. Langford said earlier this month the county had reached the minimum threshold for that declaration, when a portion of the county moved into the Severe Drought category. Sept. 12, the entire county was in Severe or Extreme categories and Langford said fires also are becoming more common — there have been 14 outside fires that county fire officials responded to in the last week.

In addition, there is no rain in the forecast for the next week (state law specifies at least three days).

Langford said the ban is more wide-reaching than simply banning residents from burning trash or having campfires. The ban also means there are specific criteria that businesses must follow if they do something that might cause a spark or flame — those who weld, or use other equipment that gets hot or might throw off sparks. He said it was the effect on those businesses that prompted fire departments to delay their decision, until continued dry conditions and winds forced their hand.

The burn ban does provide for exemptions, but specific rules must be followed for that to happen.

“There are safety measures,” he said.

The burn ban applies to the county at large and cities in Comanche County. While federal land — Native American lands, Fort Sill and Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge — do not fall under the mandate, officials in those areas typically take measures of their own, Langford said.

The commissioners’ resolution is in effect for the next 14 days, although Langford said it would be reviewed weekly and, if necessary, extended.