Firefighters were kept busy on Sunday helping quell brush and grass fires set set by landowners. (Journal file photo)
By Charlene Sims, info@linncountyjournal.com
MOUND CITY – With the dry, warm weather over last weekend, many property owners took the opportunity to burn off grass and brush. But some of those fires got out of control, which meant a busy few days for local fire departments.
County Fire Chief Randy Hegwald told the Linn County Commission during it meeting on Monday, Feb. 26, that Sunday had been very busy all day. He said he really appreciated the work of the Linn County firefighters and also other departments from around the county that responded.
And with high winds and continued dry conditions, Hegwald put a burning ban into effect following Monday’s meeting. The ban remained in effect until Wednesday morning, Feb. 28.
At the commission meeting, Hegwald reported that the past week had been very busy with 26 incidents making the year to date total 87.
Hegwald said that there will be a burn ban in effect on Tuesday.
The incidents included 11 brush or brush-and-grass mixture fires; three grass fires; two motor vehicle accidents with injuries; one motor vehicle accident with no injury; one power line down; one assist police or other governmental agency; one public service; one dispatched and canceled en route; one outside rubbish, trash or waste fire; one special outside fire; one medical assist with EMS crew, one building fire, and one mobile property (vehicle) fire.
The commissioners approved Hegwald ordering 1,150 feet of fire hose for up to $3,600 with shipping. Hegwald said this order was based on three quotes and availability of the hose. He said that the order for the company with the lowest price was 24 months out before delivery.
Hegwald explained the Everbridge notification system that the Linn County emergency services used. He said that it was provided by Homeland Security free of charge, and that there were 13 other counties in Kansas that used it.
He said that the system had not been used to its full capability. He told the commissioners that the system was very customizable and customers could decide what notifications they wanted. Linn County has just been using it for weather alerts but it could be used by cities in the county for notices like boil orders, lost dogs, and similar notifications.
To learn more about the notifications or sign up for the service, call the Emergency Services office at 888-502-2008.