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With forecasts calling for elevated wind speeds across the state, the Alabama Forestry Commission (AFC) strongly discourages any outdoor burning until conditions improve. With a significant uptick in wildfire ignitions over the last week – including more than 60 on Wednesday – the agency also points to dropping relative humidity in the afternoon as especially concerning.

The AFC issued a wildfire advisory Friday morning. Late Friday afternoon, the commission extended the advisory through the entire weekend.

In the last seven days, 130 wildfires have burned approximately 3,000 acres of forestland across the state. This includes two large wildfires in Calhoun County (a 550-acre and a 207-acre with two structures lost), one for 253 acres in Lowndes County, and three others over 100 acres in Perry, Pike, and St. Clair counties.

The Highland Home Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department responded to a wildland fire near the intersection of Saville Road and Norman Road in Crenshaw County around 1:30 p.m. Thursday.

“Our units arrived on scene and had difficulty accessing the property where the fire was located,” volunteers shared on social media. “Once we gained access and sized up the situation, which was a large fire that was moving quickly.”

Volunteers from Honoraville and Fullers Crossroads fire departments joined in the effort alongside the AFC, protecting homes while the commission created a fire break. The 51-acre fire took around four hours of extinguishing flames and protecting nearby homes, volunteers said.

In addition to already dry conditions, gusty winds and low relative humidities combine to create dangerous wildfire behavior. The combination of these conditions creates a greater-than-average potential for outdoor fires to escape easily and spread rapidly, taking longer – and more of the agency’s firefighting resources – to contain and ultimately control. Fast-moving wildfires not only destroy property and forests but also threaten the lives of citizens and endanger firefighters.

Now through the weekend, burn permits will be restricted to Certified Prescribed Burn Managers only. Special attention should be given to local weather outlets as fire weather conditions may change suddenly. Anyone who burns a field, grassland, or woodland without a burn permit may be subject to prosecution for committing a Class B misdemeanor.

Anyone who has burned in the last few days should check their fires to make sure they are properly extinguished. Smoking piles immediately adjacent to flammable vegetation have the chance to rekindle and spread under these conditions.

The Alabama Forestry Commission is the state agency committed to protecting Alabama’s invaluable forest assets as well as its citizens. To report a wildfire, call (800) 392-5679. For more information on the current wildfire situation in the state or any other forestry-related issues, contact your local AFC office or visit the agency website at www.forestry.alabama.gov.