Sheriff Randy Brown operated a bulldozer used to cut a fire break during a 30-acre wildfire that broke out near Rio Medina Sunday night.
The fire involving rough terrain and heavy brush in the 800 block of County Road 265 was 60 percent contained Monday morning, said Medina County Emergency Management Coordinator Mark Chadwick.
Numerous Medina County fire agencies responded with the county serving as incident command, he said. The Texas Forest Service also assisted.
Officials on the scene included County Judge Keith Lutz, Precinct 2 Commissioner Larry Sittre, Sheriff Brown and Chadwick.
Severe Drought forces Burn Ban in Medina County
Severe drought forces burn ban for Medina County
On August 10, 2023, Medina County Commissioner’s Court implemented a countywide burn ban due to the severe drought conditions and fire danger. The ban is effective for 90 days and may be extended if the current conditions persist.
“We need to do our utmost to prevent fires of that nature from occurring in Medina County,” said Mark Chadwick, county emergency management coordinator.
No outdoor burning is authorized other than the approved exceptions. Per the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Chapter 111 residents may burn “domestic waste” consisting of kitchen garbage, cardboard, cloth, leaves, and grass. However, the burning of domestic waste during the ban is limited to the following:
- Burning within a burn barrel with no waste protruding from the top of the barrel.
- The barrel must be covered with a small opening grate no more than a one-inch gap between the grating to reduce the likelihood of embers flying.
- A water source must be readily available next to the barrel.
- The person burning MUST call the Medina County Sheriff’s Office dispatch non-emergency number of 830-741-6153 to provide their name, address and phone number prior to burning.
- The person burning must stay in the immediate vicinity of the burn barrel until the fire is extinguished and not leave the fire unattended at any time.
- Burning in a barrel is to be accomplished in the morning hours between 7:00 am and 11:00 am.
- No burning is authorized in a barrel at night.
- If the National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning, no burning will be authorized that day.
For residents who are doing land clearing and require to conduct burning of brush piles, Medina County has rules for how to obtain a Burn Notice Exception. The resident will need to make an appointment for the Medina County Fire Marshal, by calling 830-455-0129, to do an inspection of the burn site and the landowner/tenant/operator will need to sign for responsibility of the fire.
The rules for burning under a Burn Notice Exception are: - All brush piles must be of a reasonable size. If you have a contractor who is pushing up brush, make sure that they are not creating massive brush piles or the piles will have to be broken down in size before burning.
- As with domestic waste, no burning is authorized if the National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning under any circumstances.
- Burning is not authorized if the winds are over 10 mph.
- The person burning MUST call the Medina County Sheriff’s Office dispatch non-emergency number of 830-741-6153 to provide their name, address and phone number prior to burning.
- The person burning must have means of communication (cell phone) with them in case emergency services are needed.
- The person burning must have a water source or heavy equipment immediately available prior to burning.
- The burn pile cannot be left unattended at any time. This means that if several piles need to be burned, the person will need to plan to burn them individually over separate days or times.
- No burning is authorized at night and all fires MUST be extinguished by nightfall.
All around the State there are catastrophic fires burning that are endangering lives and property.