AREA ESCAPING DREADED FOREST FIRE SEASON

(12/05/2008)

Calhoun and most regional counties appears to be escaping what was predicted to be an intense forest fire season. Some record dry months brought on the concerns. Calhoun citizens have been really careful with their burning habits. Some precipitation and colder temperatures that arrived last month and have continued into this month turned it into an average season, said Ben Webster with the state Division of Forestry. "That's what saved us," Webster said. "I would say we got off with less activity than we thought we were going to have." If there are no more forest fires this month, the state will have ended the year with a total of 875 reported fires burning 12,131 acres. That may sound pretty bad, but consider that 1,022 fires burned 17,608 acres two years ago and 887 fires burned 86,465 acres in 2001, according to forestry data. The fall fire season - and the outdoor burning restrictions - ends December 31.

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