Sheriff, BLM Place county-Wide fire Ban

The Mesa County Sheriff and Bureau of Land Management implemented  county-wide fire restrictions effective May 24. All Mesa County Fire Departments are supporting the fire restrictions.

“Mesa County has significant wildland vegetation areas, not just in the rural community but also within city and town limits.” Grand Junction Fire Chief Ken Watkins said. “Coordinating these restrictions throughout the county and all fire districts will help our firefighters keep the community safer during the upcoming summer season.”

The restrictions allow fires in government-designated fire pits only, but restrict any open flames and fires in non-approved fire pits. Fire restrictions are implemented based on moisture content of the vegetation, weather predictions and fuel content in our county.

“It’s important that we implement these restrictions together in an effort to eliminate any confusion about just how high the current fire danger is,” Sheriff Stan Hilkey said. “Our hope is that everyone complies with the restrictions to reduce the chance of additional wildfires and unnecessary risks to our firefighters.”

The BLM Grand Junction and Colorado River Valley field offices both entered fire restrictions May 24 on all the lands they administer. The higher elevation National Forest System lands in Mesa County will not implement fire restrictions at this time, conditions on these lands will continue to be monitored; however, visitors are still urged to be cautious with fire. For more information about fire restrictions on federal lands in the Upper Colorado River Interagency Fire Management Unit, log on to: gacc.nifc.gov/rmcc/dispatch_centers/r2gjc/. Or to get information on fire restrictions statewide, visit www.coemergency.com.

The ramifications to those who choose to be careless and disregard fire restrictions are severe. Violations are punishable by law, and fines can amount to $100,000 and/or imprisonment up to 12 months.