Travis County reinstates burn ban citing high fire danger

Travis County commissioners signed off on a burn ban Tuesday morning, as was recommended by the Travis County Fire Marshall. The ban will go into place immediately.

TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Commissioners signed off on a burn ban Tuesday morning for unincorporated parts of Travis County, as was recommended by the Travis County Fire Marshall. The ban will go into place immediately.

A burn ban was lifted last week by Chief Fire Marshal Tony Callaway after Central Texas got quite a bit of precipitation during last week's storm; but that freeze also killed off any fuels that were still hanging in there, he reported.

Couple that with low humidity levels for the rest of the week and Callaway said they were worried about the potential for high fire danger. That ban will last until March 9, unless conditions dramatically improve.

Under the ban you CANNOT:

• Burn any combustible material outside of an enclosure which contains all flames and/or sparks
• Engage in any activity outdoors that could allow flames or sparks that could result in a fire unless done in an enclosure designed to protect the spread of fire

You could face a misdemeanor charge and a fine of up to $500 if you don’t follow the rules, according to a previous burn ban order that was in place.

"We always go out in an education manner first and we cite repeat offenders," Callaway said.

If you live in unincorporated Travis County and would like to get text messages about burn ban status changes, you can sign up for those alerts on Travis County’s website here.

If you have questions, you can contact the Fire Marshal’s Office at (512) 854-4621.