San Diego County burn permit suspension lifted

EL CAJON – Effective Friday, Dec. 6, at 8 a.m. the burn permit suspension in San Diego County has been lifted. CAL FIRE San Diego Unit Chief Tony Mecham formally canceled the burn permit suspension and advised that those possessing current and valid agriculture and residential burn permits can now resume burning on permissible burn days.

Agriculture burns must be inspected by CAL FIRE before burning, and inspections may be required for residential burns as well. This can be verified by contacting one's local CAL FIRE station.

CAL FIRE burn permits will be required for all agriculture or residential burning. Cooler temperatures, higher humidity and the chance of winter weather have helped to begin to diminish the threat of wildfire.

Property owners and residents are asked to use caution while conducting debris or agricultural burns, follow all guidelines provided, and maintain control of the fire at all times. Individuals can be held civilly and/or criminally liable for allowing a fire to escape their control and/or burn onto neighboring property.

Residents wishing to burn must verify it is a permissive burn day before burning and record their intention to burn by contacting their local CAL FIRE station.

Safe residential pile burning of forest residue by landowners is a crucial tool in reducing fire hazards. State, federal and local land management and fire agencies will be utilizing this same window of opportunity to conduct prescribed burns aimed at improving forest health and resiliency on private and public lands.

For more information on burning, visit http://www.fire.ca.gov.