MIDLAND, Texas — People all over the state are keeping their eye on the weather, droughts and how to be proactive when it comes to stopping wildfires before they start.
Here in West Texas, local county leaders made the decision to enact a burn ban.
Commissioners in Midland and Ector counties made the decision to prohibit some types of burning to remain cautious when it comes to the possibility of wildfires.
"Well as wet as it was last year, the brush has really grown and with as dry as it is now it's all dead and our fire activity is due to increase if we have these fires," said Justin Bunch, Fire Marshal and Emergency Management Coordinator for Midland County.
This is why commissioners made the decision to add a burn ban to Midland County.
"90 days, we'll start today until I think June 26 is the 90 day mark," said Bunch.
The county must meet certain state requirements for a fire ban to even be considered.
"We've got to reach a drought index of 575, that's established by the Texas Forest Service and we recently reached that, I think today we're at 579," said Bunch. "So that allows the county to restrict burning activities."
The burn ban prohibits most outdoor burning, but there are some exceptions if extra precautions are taken.
"Residents can still burn their trash, they've got to do it in an enclosed barrel with a grate and have a water source, and we ask that they call dispatch before they burn anything to let us know, so we don't send the fire department out there," said Bunch. "There's other exemptions, like agriculture, firefighting training and things like that, but most other fire activities are banned for now."
If you are burning trash or burning for agricultural reasons, the fire marshal asks that you call and give them a heads up.
"If you do need to burn and your legal to do it, just call our non-emergency number for dispatch to let them know, that way if someone sees smoke and we don't send half of the fire department out there," said Bunch.
Just one spark can cause chaos.
"The fires can get out of control pretty quick, and with the brush we have right now it can get out of control it can go onto someone else's property and burn other houses down," said Bunch. "I mean, you look at the Brownwood area and the Eastland area. I mean whole communities can burn, so that's what were trying to prevent here."
The commissioners will reevaluate the ban after 90 days.