— Firefighters from more than a dozen fire departments fought a large grass fire Tuesday afternoon on Elm Grove Road.

Wind blew large, billowing clouds of smoke toward the north.

Sheila Dause, deputy director of Muskogee County Emergency Management, said 100 acres burned.

“We didn’t have to ask any people to leave their homes,” she said. “The men here did talk to two homeowners to let them know fire was headed in their direction after jumping a pond, but they were able to stay.”

Dause said the blaze was under control by 5 p.m.

“It’s contained, and we’re keeping an eye on it to make sure it doesn’t spark back up,” she said. “It’s too soon to estimate how much hay was lost.”

Dause said the huge fire was stopped by firefighters from Fort Gibson, Porum, Keefeton, Brushy Mountain, Texanna, Shady Grove, Muskogee, Wainwright, Gooseneck Bend, Oktaha, Warner and Webbers Falls.

County Commissioner Gene Wallace said he and the other commissioners have been concerned about the risk of fire.

“We actually thought we would be able to declare a burn ban Monday morning at our meeting,” he said. “But, under the advice of emergency management, we did not meet all the criteria. We are under extremely dry conditions, and we advise everyone to be careful.”

The only nearby area that has declared a burn ban is Cherokee County. For a burn ban to be declared, Oklahoma law requires the following four conditions:

• Moderate, severe or extreme drought conditions must exist within the county as determined by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

• No more than one-half inch of precipitation is forecast by the National Weather Service for the next three days.

• Fire occurrence is significantly greater than normal for the season and/or initial attack on a significant number of wildland fires has been unsuccessful due to extreme behavior.

• More than 20 percent of the wildfires in the county have been caused by escaped debris burning or controlled burning activities.

What to do

If a wildfire is approaching:

• Call for help. Use a cell phone if your electric power has been interrupted.

• Close all entrances to your home and garage including windows, doors, garage doors, and vents.

• Close shutters, heavy drapes, Venetian blinds or other window coverings. Doing so helps to prevent sparks from blowing inside your house and igniting.

• Have tools and water accessible. Fill buckets and other bulk containers with water. Have a shovel, rake and long water hose accessible to fire fighting crews.

• Dress to protect yourself. Wear cotton/woolen clothing including long pants, a long-sleeved shirt, gloves and a handkerchief to protect your face.

• Wet down the roof. If your roof is combustible, wet it down with a hose. Place the ladder you use for this task on the side of the roof opposite the fire.

• Turn off the residential fuel. If you use natural gas or butane, turn it off at the tank or meter.

• Prepare the automobiles. Back as many vehicles as possible into the garage. Then close the door. In the event that you evacuate remember to close the garage door behind you as you leave. If you do not have a garage or if yours is full, park your vehicles heading in the direction of the evacuation route.

• Don’t wait until the last minute to make the decision to leave. Never jeopardize the personal safety of you and your family.

• Evacuate the family. If evacuation becomes necessary, take your family and pets to a safe place.

Source: Oklahoma

Forestry Service

Reach Keith Purtell at 684-2925 or kpurtell@muskogeephoenix.com.