Anchor Point Fire & Gov Walker Remind Alaskans to be Fire Wise

Alaska Gov. Bill Walker has proclaimed this week (May 14-20) as Wildland Fire Prevention and Preparedness Week in Alaska. 

Wildland firefighters from the Alaska Division of Forestry were called to a 1-acre grass fire in Anchor Point on Sunday that was started as a result of a hot chainsaw being set down in dry grass. With assistance from the Anchor Point Volunteer Fire Department, Homer Fire Department and Kachemak Bay Emergency Services, firefighters were able to control and contain the fire but not before it burned an outbuilding and scorched the side of a residential cabin. This should serve as a stark reminder of the many ways a wildfire can be started.

Last week a grass fire started in Palmer when a charcoal grill blew over in the wind and caught the grass on fire, nearly burning down a house. Dead grass is an extremely volatile fuel and it will remain that way until things green up.

With temperatures warming up, people are getting out camping and gathering around campfires. Campfires are annually the third-leading cause of human-caused wildfires in Alaska. Last year, 50 of the 373 fires in Division of Forestry protection areas (13%) were caused by campfires.

Please be careful with any kind of activity that can ignite a wildfire, especially when dry grass is involved.  Burn smart and be safe.  The following Firewise Brochure from Alaska's Division of Forestry gives full information about effective measures you can take to protect your home and property and reduce the risk of wildfire damage.