WHITEHOUSE, Ohio — The Whitehouse Fire Department has responded to 13 wildland fires caused by illegal burns since October. Last year, it responded to two.
"You don't know how fires are going to spread," said Jason Francis, Fire Chief of the Whitehouse Fire Department. "You think you do, but it's a lot different from field fires and wildland fires than it is for house fires."
Francis says farmers are burning their fall leaves and although they don't mean for the fires to get out of control, the fires can.
"If you decide to burn leaves on your property, it's going to get away from you," said Francis. "If you don't think that your property is going to catch on fire, it's going to."
November is one of the 5 burn ban months in Ohio. It is illegal to burn from 6 a.m.-6 p.m. and to have an open burn or open burn pile in your yard, even if it's secluded. More importantly, fire departments want you to know it's illegal to burn leaves, no matter the time of day.
One of the 13 wildland fires the Whitehouse Fire Department responded to burned 10 acres, required nearly 45 firefighters and over 25 pieces of equipment to exstinguish it.
'The owner told me that he was burning leaves and it just got away because of the dry ground," said Francis.
Whitehouse is not the only department that has been facing fires due to illegal burns. Last week, WTOL 11 reported on the Jerusalem Fire Department tackling the same issue.
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