S
everal brush fires were reported around Kanawha County over the weekend. At least one was stoked by strong winds which swept through the valley through Sunday.
Friday afternoon, firefighters responded to a brush fire at Greyhound Point near Lakeview Drive in Nitro.
"The fire was caused by a utility vehicle that caught on fire spreading to the dry brush," a representative with the Nitro Fire Department said.
No one was injured in the fire. The blaze took responders nearly 45 minutes to extinguish, officials said.
On Saturday, a brush fire reportedly burned several acres along Keaton Ridge Road near Pinch.
Resident Elijah Hager told local television station WSAZ that wind spread ash from a burn pile fire.
“I’m at the front of the trailer burning a couple of cardboard boxes and stuff -- the wind took the ash to the back of the trailer,” Hager said.
Weather officials warned of an increased fire risk over the weekend. On Monday, officials said that risk could return this week.
"Mostly dry weather rules over the area for the next several days courtesy of high pressure," forecasters with the National Weather Service (NWS) in Charleston wrote on social media. "Temperatures will trend warmer each day as a result, and could impose concerns for fire danger for both Tuesday and Wednesday."
Per state law, burning restrictions are in place across West Virginia from March 1 to May 31 each year. During this time, burning is prohibited from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“Even though we have had a wet and snowy winter, it doesn’t take very long for our fuels to dry out," West Virginia Division of Forestry Director Jeremy Jones said in a statement. "We would like to ask the public to please follow burning restrictions, especially on sunny and windy conditions."
