Beautiful weather also carries the risk of fire

Low humidity, temperatures in the 70s and March breezes make for a dandy spring break — but they also increase the danger of fire.

Some area fire departments have banned open burning as a precaution.

The National Weather Service in Pleasant Hill concurs.

“Basically we’ve got pretty low relative humidity values in Kansas City, so the air is very dry,” said Joey Welsh, a meteorologist at the weather service. “We have not received any precipitation for some time.”

Southerly winds of 15 to 20 mph have contributed to the danger.

There is a chance of precipitation Friday for areas south and southeast of Kansas City, but most of the region will remain dry for a while.

“We’ll have widespread fire weather concerns due to a dry air mass moving in over the weekend,” Welsh said.

Area fire crews have already had to battle grass fires in recent days.

The Central Jackson County Fire Protection District on Thursday issued a burn ban, even for people who have a permit.

“With the warmer temperatures, more people are outside and starting yard work and property cleanup,” said an announcement from the district. “The extremely dry weather and wet ground underneath have increased the risk of grass fires and is making it difficult to access the fire and put it out.”

The district said that people who smoke outside should use a metal can with water to dispose of ashes and butts.

The South Metropolitan Fire Protection District also ordered a burn ban on Thursday, as did the West Peculiar Fire Protection District.

“The burn ban will be lifted when the humidity increases and the threat of natural cover fires is reduced,” said an announcement from Lewis Young, chief of the West Peculiar district.

This story was originally published March 12, 2015 at 5:36 PM with the headline "Beautiful weather also carries the risk of fire."