Commissioners to consider burn ban at upcoming meeting

Hannigan's Notebook

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Commissioners to consider burn ban at upcoming meeting

Aug 13, 2020

(Courtesy photo: County Judge Wade McKinney.)

Note: This interview was recorded in the County Judge’s courtroom on Wednesday, August 12.

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Henderson County Commissioners Court will discuss a possible burn ban during its regular meeting 9 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 18, County Judge Wade McKinney said during our weekly interview this week.

“We follow the Keetch-Byram Index, which measures the moisture in the soil,” McKinney said. “We have always keyed when we look at a burn ban to that.”

As of Wednesday, the Keetch-Byram Drought Index (KBDI) showed Henderson County with a low rating of 490 and a high of 639 for an average of 570. A burn ban is recommended when the KBDI is at 575.

Often the KBDI rating shows one end of the County wet and the other dry.

“I remember one time we put a burn ban in place on the west side of Highway 19,” McKinney said. “And yes, that works wonderful on the map, but you have overlapping fire jurisdictions and it really became problematic to enforce.”

You can find out if the County is under a burn ban by going to its website and checking at the top of the page.

Ignoring a burn ban is a Class C misdemeanor, punishable by a fine up to $500.