North Port imposes burn ban as 'moderate drought' conditions grip region

Earle Kimel, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
Updated ·3 min read
This map shows that both Sarasota and DeSoto counties registered between 600 and 649 on the Keech Byram Drought Index as of May 22. That places the counties in moderate drought conditions.
This map shows that both Sarasota and DeSoto counties registered between 600 and 649 on the Keech Byram Drought Index as of May 22. That places the counties in moderate drought conditions.

NORTH PORT – The city of North Port enacted a burn ban Tuesday, prohibiting outdoor campfires, land clearing burning and pile burns and bringing the city in line with a similar ban enacted earlier this month in unincorporated Sarasota County and the cities of Sarasota and Venice.

Sarasota County and most of Manatee and Charlotte counties are experiencing ‘“moderate drought” conditions, according to the latest information from the U.S. Drought Monitor.

Sarasota County is well above a score of 600 on the Keetch-Byram drought index, a continuous reference for soil dryness on a scale of 0-800.

Sarasota County and Venice enacted their burn bans in early May when the index crossed 500. North Port uses the same criteria as the Florida Forest Service, which calls for a ban when the index is between 575 and 600.

North Port Fire Chief Scott Titus said the index in the city was at 610 on Tuesday.

Christianne Pearce a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Ruskin, said Sarasota and Manatee have received four inches less rain than normal from March 1 through May 22, and the forecast calls for more dry weather.

“Unfortunately the dry pattern does stick around through most of this week,” Pearce said. “We just have this high-pressure system over us – that’s what’s keeping us warm and dry.”

The best chance of rain will come May 29-30, Pearce said.

“And honestly it’s only like 30-40% chance then,” she added,

A North Port Fire Rescue release noted that Titus determined that an extraordinary fire hazard now exists because of the drought and fire hazard conditions.

It noted that Sarasota County has received only 8% of its average rainfall this month and is 30% behind year-to-date totals.

The North Port burn ban does not affect permits issued by the Florida Forest Service and outdoor cooking fires in approved gas or charcoal barbecue grills are permitted.

“With the weekend coming around and people going out to a lot of picnics and barbecues, be very diligent on how you dispose of your coals, if you use charcoal,” Titus said.

“Be extra diligent out there until we get some rain. It’s extra dry out there and the littlest spark would start a fire,” he added.

While the exact cause of a fire that occurred along the Interstate 75 corridor near the Border Road overpass on Monday has not yet been determined, Titus said roadside fires could be caused by everything from a tossed cigarette to sparks generated by a metal rim after a car loses a tire – something that he said did happen a couple of weeks back in North Port.

While it’s too soon to speculate whether the dry conditions could impact July 4 fireworks celebrations, Titus said people should be aware of local ordinance for any personal celebrations over Memorial Day weekend.

“I’m sure people will want to set them off Memorial Day weekend, it being a holiday weekend,” Titus said. “We recommend not setting off any fireworks, especially with the conditions how they are.”

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Rainfall deficit causing moderate drought as North Port sets burn ban