Brush fire danger remains high in Pierce County despite rain, cooler temperatures

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Fire crews warn residents to not get comfortable with the rain and cooler temperatures-- brush is still dry and fires can spread.

PIERCE COUNTY, Wash. - Despite the rain and cooler temperatures, the risk of brush fires remains very high in the region. Lightning in the forecast is raising concern for firefighters who have been battling flames throughout the summer.

There is an active Stage 2 Burn Ban in Pierce County, where fire marshal Ken Rice said the change in weather is not enough to reduce brush fire danger.

"Don't get comfortable because it's cooler. The fire danger still exists," said Bill Sandlian, assistant chief with East Pierce Fire & Rescue.

For some fire agencies in Pierce County, this has been one of their busiest brush fire seasons. East Pierce Fire & Rescue has responded to 72 brush fires this summer. Even with cooler temperatures and rain, Sandlian said his crews don’t expect to catch a break.

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"The fine fuels are still really dry," said Sandlian. "The winds, the fine fuels and a little bit of a spark—the fuels are still going to take off."

Wind from thunderstorms isn’t the only thing fueling the flames. South Pierce Fire & Rescue Chief Todd Wernet said his team is monitoring lightning in the forecast.

"Lightning is always a concern, because [of] the amount of energy and heat that it produces in a lightning strike," said Wernet.

FOX 13 meteorologists said there were 159 cloud-to-ground lightning strikes west of the Cascade Mountains during a 24-hour period between Aug. 28–29. 10% of those strikes were positive, which our meteorologists said are much more dangerous and create higher risk for fires.

"With lightning, with weather like that, you often get high winds. So, once you do get some type of ignition, it moves very quickly because of the high winds that are associated with thunderstorms, thundershowers," explained Wernet.

Though there is a storm brewing in the forecast for the region, fire officials said there won’t be enough rainfall to saturate the several acres of dry brown grass, shrubs and trees, which fuel brush fires.

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"You could have two or three days of sunshine right now and everything along the freeways and the medians, side of the road is all going to be bone dry again, and it’s going to be just as easy to light and burn as it was in the middle of the summer," said Wernet.

Officials are urging the public to help them reduce the threat by obeying the active Stage 2 Burn Ban. Charcoal and gas barbeque grills are okay on concrete surfaces. Fire pits, bonfires and burning of any debris or yard waste is not allowed.

"Any kind of wind, like we're experiencing right now, a little bit of a breeze you get an ember outside your fire pit and it's going to take off," said Sandlian. "No open fire pits, no bonfires, no open flame fires."

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