Fire restrictions begin in county/public lands

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Current and forecasted weather conditions coupled with extremely dry conditions and heavy loading of vegetation throughout the State of Utah has created hazardous fire conditions. As a result, all state and federal lands, and all unincorporated private lands, will be under fire restrictions beginning 12:01 a.m. on June 14th, 2012. The restrictions will be in place until the fire hazard subsides. Fire managers from the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands, Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service came to the mutual decision on Wednesday. Each agency has specific restriction orders that may contain different stipulations, but all the orders have in common a prohibition of the following acts: 1. Setting, building, maintaining, attending or using open fires of any kind, except campfires built within the facilities provided for them in improved campgrounds, picnic areas or permanently improved places of habitation. 2. Smoking, except within an enclosed vehicle or building, a developed recreation site or while stopped in an area at least three feet in diameter that is barren or cleared to mineral soil. 3. Discharging, or using any kind of fireworks, tracer ammunition or other pyrotechnic devices. These restrictions do not apply to lands within incorporated towns and cities; however, each municipality may have similar or more restrictive ordinances. Questions about specific areas should be directed to local authorities. For more information on the restrictions, please visit www.utahfireinfo.gov