(Des Moines, Iowa) – The State Fire Marshal’s Office has issued a ban on open burning in Adair County, effective today (Wednesday), at 3-p.m., and until further notice. The Order is the result of a request from Adair/Guthrie County Emergency Management Director Robert Kempf, who was acting on behalf of the fire chiefs in each of the fire departments in Adair County. The Burn Ban states “No person shall engage in open burning in Adair County… except as specifically permitted by Iowa Code,” and until the EMA Director notifies the State Fire Marshal that conditions are such that they no longer constitute a danger to life or property. 

Violation of the Burn Ban is a simple misdemeanor.

IOWA CODE SECTION 100.40 Marshal may prohibit open burning on request.

1. The state fire marshal, during periods of extremely dry conditions or under other conditions when the state fire marshal finds open burning constitutes a danger to life or property, may prohibit open burning in an area of the state at the request of the chief of a local fire department, a city council or a board of supervisors and when an investigation supports the need for the prohibition. The state fire marshal shall implement the prohibition by issuing a proclamation to persons in the affected area. The chief of a local fire department, the city council or the board of supervisors that requested the prohibition may rescind the proclamation after notifying the state fire marshal of the intent to do so, when the chief, city council or board of supervisors finds that the conditions responsible for the issuance of the proclamation no longer exist.
2. Violation of a prohibition issued under this section is a simple misdemeanor.
3. A proclamation issued by the state fire marshal pursuant to this section shall not prohibit a supervised, controlled burn for which a permit has been issued by the fire chief of the fire district where the burn will take place, the use of outdoor fireplaces, barbecue grills, properly supervised landfills, or the burning of trash in incinerators or trash burners made of metal, concrete, masonry, or heavy one-inch wire mesh, with no openings greater than one square inch.