It’s gettin’ hot in here

Although Arkadelphia has received plenty of rain this summer, residents still need to take precautions for when the driest days of summer are upon us.

Lack of rain in heavily vegetated areas can lead to dryness of the ground and plant life. The plant life then becomes the perfect kindling for a wildfire. This is concerning because a large part of Arkansas is covered with trees and vegetation.

“In Arkadelphia limits people are only allowed to burn tree limbs and other landscaping scraps,” Fire Captain Marty Adair of Arkadelphia Fire Station One said. “But occasionally we do have some folks who start burning a mattress or couch. Which is not allowed.”

Some tips for having a safe fire include:
Keep an eye on the fire until it is done.
Have a bucket of water around just in case .
Rake the ground and surrounding area before burning.
Make sure the fire is completely extinguished before leaving.

Although they do not see many wildfires in the city, AFD responds to the occasional yard fire. Luckily, Arkadelphia’s abundance of roads make it easy to gain access to the fire on most calls. During the winter the fire station responds to more house fires.

“The biggest one we see is people leaving space heaters on and catching fire,” said Captain Adair. “Or they will have multiple cheap extension cords plugged up to the heater and they melt and catch fire.”

Captain Adair stresses the most important prevention measure to have in your home or business is a smoke detector. If you live in Arkadelphia city limits and your home does not have smoke detectors. The fire department will install them in your home for free.

“If you plan on burning something,” Captain Adair said. “Call the fire department and let us know, just so we know where to go if we get another call.”

The Arkadelphia Fire Department is located at 610 Caddo Street. You can contact them at 870 246-9354.