At 7 a.m. today, Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue enacted a High-Fire Danger Burn Ban. Burning restrictions are authorized under Oregon Revised Statute 478.960 and Oregon Fire Code 307.
The burn ban prohibits all the following:
- Backyard or open burning (branches, yard debris, etc.).
- Agricultural burning (agricultural wastes, crops, field burning, etc.).
- Any other land clearing, slash, stump, waste, debris or controlled burning.
The burn ban does not prohibit:
- Small outdoor cooking, warming or recreational fires. These include portable or permanent fire pits, fire tables, and campfires, with a maximum fuel area of three feet in diameter and two feet in height in a safe location away from combustibles or vegetation and are fully extinguished after use.
- Barbeque grills, smokers and similar cooking appliances with clean, dry firewood, briquettes, wood chips, pellets, propane, natural gas, or similar fuels.
Outdoor fires in violation of this burn ban may be immediately extinguished. If TVF&R responds to a fire that has been started in willful violation of this burn ban, the person responsible may be liable for all costs incurred, as well as legal fees per ORS 478.965.
TVF&R fire officials encourage the public to use extreme caution with activities that could start a fire. It is everyone’s responsibility to prevent and prepare for wildfire.