CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — On Wednesday Nueces County Commissioners voted to issue a burn ban due to dry conditions. As of right now all outdoor burning in unincorporated areas is prohibited, including beach bonfires, until further notice.
The burn ban does not prohibit outdoor burning activities that are related to public health and safety authorized by the TCEQ. Those include firefighter training, public utility and natural gas pipeline operations or harvesting crops.
The ban allows household trash burning only if trash pickup is not available. In that case, closed containers like steel barrels can be used but only if a spark and flame arresting screen is placed over the container.
Below is the story before updates.
The weather has been less than ideal for many reasons this fall, but according to officials, the biggest threat facing our county is the lack of rain and drier conditions which put us at a higher risk when it comes to grassfires.
During their meeting on Wednesday, Nueces County Commissioners plan to vote yes or no on whether to enact a burn ban.
A decision that County Judge Connie Scott will have final say on.
If the leaders decide to place a burn ban on the county it will run until Dec. 13.
Tony Perez, the new city fire marshal come January, told 3NEWS the city is usually always under a burn ban.
He said City officials do keep an eye on the County's decision, and are closely monitoring the areas in the Coastal Bend that look "likely to light," specifically Padre Island.
"We pay a lot of attention as to, you know, what's going on in the county because a lot of our areas that we respond to are right there at the city limit lines and whatnot," Perez said. "We need rain. We need rain really bad. And that's gonna be the fix and unfortunately the time of year that it is, we don't see a lot of rain during this time, but you know, anything could happen."
He asks everyone to do their part to be safe with or without a burn ban.
Know your conditions and if you see something say something. Even if someone already called it in, it doesn't hurt to check with dispatch because these fires grow fast.
According to Scott, the burn ban is a standard procedure anytime the drought index gets above 500.