Barrow Co says no burn permits before drought relief

Barrow County says no burn permits until northeast Georgia gets some significant drought relief. The US Drought Monitor says most of Barrow County is under moderate drought conditions. There is no word on when the officials in Winder might resume issuing the burn permits. They say they’ll wait and see how rain over the next few days might impact the drought status. The burn permit decision comes after last week’s fire at the Barrow County landfill.

From the Barrow Co government website…

‘Upon arrival, firefighters found a large fire in the Highway 11 Inert Landfill,” stated Public Information Officer Scott Dakin. “The fire was growing rapidly due to the amount of inert wood products.”

Firefighters worked to stop the fire from spreading to a nearby neighborhood and elementary school. Firefighters are also being assisted by personnel with the Georgia Forestry Commission. At this time the fire has been contained inside the property of the landfill. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

“This fire will be burning for several days due to the amount of wood burning,” stated Captain Dakin. “We will have firefighters on scene during this time to keep the fire under control. The fire is visible for a long distance.” Citizens are asked to use caution in the area when traveling.

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