Outdoor burning restrictions start March 1

No burning allowed from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily until May 31
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Officials at the Division of Forestry remind West Virginia residents that the spring forest fire season begins Sunday, March 1. Starting Sunday, no outdoor fires will be allowed during the daytime hours of 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fires to burn brush or other vegetative debris may only be started after 4 p.m. and must be
extinguished by 7 a.m. Outdoor burning is restricted to evening hours when cooler temperatures, increased humidity and calmer winds reduce the likelihood of fires spreading.

Fire Staff Assistant Ben Webster says that since Jan. 1, the state has already had nearly 100 fires that have burned approximately 800 acres. “We’ve seen quite a few fires so far this year despite the snow and rain most of the state has received. Half of those were the direct result of fires where people started to burn debris that later were allowed to escape and burn multiple acres.”