A 14-day burn ban was issued for Garvin County Monday morning.
The Garvin County Board of Commissioners approved the burn ban resolution during their regular meeting Monday.
The action comes as strong winds, low humidity and dormant or dry vegetation have caused extreme fire danger conditions across much of the state over the last week. High fire danger conditions are forecast to continue through the weekend.
Since March 14, more than 130 wildfires have burned thousands of acres across the state, caused four deaths and damaged or destroyed more than 400 homes.
In an update to county commissioners during Monday’s meeting Garvin County Emergency Management Director David Johnson said the county’s 12 fire departments collectively answer two to three fire calls in a typical week.
“A busy day would be six to eight fire calls in the county,” Johnson said.
On March 14, county fire departments responded to 50 fire calls, Johnson said. Some of those were mutual aid fire calls to neighboring counties, but at least 38 were calls inside of Garvin County.
Several Garvin County fire departments responded to a large fire at Velma in neighboring Stephens County Friday, as well as to a fire in McClain County, just north of Lindsay. More than 500 acres burned in the McClain County fire, according to Johnson, but no homes were lost.
Johnson said as of Monday, less than 75 acres had burned in Garvin County and no structures had burned.
“We had an outstanding response,” Johnson said. “I think, when you look at the rest of the state, we came through it really, really well.”
Johnson said since Friday most of the fire chiefs in the county have expressed strong support for putting a burn ban in place due to the current conditions.
“And for the first time since I’ve been an emergency manager, Friday evening and Saturday I had citizens calling me asking if we were going to put a burn ban in place or if we already had a burn ban in place,” Johnson said.
As of Wednesday, Garvin County was one of nine Oklahoma counties to have an active burn ban resolution in place.
The burn ban resolution prohibits “setting fire to any forest, grass range, crop or other wild lands” and outdoor burning including campfires, bonfires and burning trash. Penalties for violating the burn ban can include a fine of up to $500 and up to a year in jail.
