Controlled burns smoke up region
Posted on Saturday, February 24, 2007
A smoky haze over parts of Northwest Arkansas on Friday was likely caused by at least one of several controlled burns in the region, a national forestry official said.
Forestry officials at the Ozark National Forest in Newton and Johnson counties burned a combined 2, 571 acres of forestry land Friday as part of a controlled burn.
“This is the best time of year to conduct controlled burns,” said Tracy Farley, spokesman for the Ozark-St. Francis and Ouachita National Forests.
Winds were higher than expected Friday, Farley said, but none of the controlled burns got out of control.
Arkansas forestry officials also had smaller controlled burns Friday in Sebastian and Madison counties, Farley said.
Officials were unsure which controlled burns produced the smoke that made its way to Benton and Washington counties.
Fire departments in Benton County responded to several calls Friday afternoon, said Marshal Watson, director of the Benton County Department of Emergency Management.
Residents in Benton and Washington counties have been asked not to have controlled burns this week because of recent dry conditions.
“We’ve received reports all day about the smoke,” Watson said.
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