BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) – The Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry has issued a new statewide burn ban due to increased fire danger on Friday, Aug. 25.
LDAF said the previous burn ban order issued on Aug. 7 has been rescinded. A new burn was reissued with an update that all agricultural burns, including prescribed burns, are prohibited until further notice.
The issue went into effect at noon Friday and will remain in place until it’s lifted.
The Office of the Louisiana State Fire Marshal also issued a burn ban prohibiting all private burning with no limitations. This order is in effect as of noon August 25, 2023, and shall remain in effect until rescinded.
Violation of the burn ban order could result in criminal and civil penalties.
Governor issues an executive order on prescribed burns
Gov. John Bel Edwards issued an executive order Friday suspending all prescribed burns in the state, including those used for forest, agricultural and coastal land management. The executive order is effective immediately and is in addition to the current burn ban.
There is no exception to the burn ban, Edwards said. The governor’s office said more than 440 fires have damaged or destroyed more than 30,000 acres of land, including the wildfires in Beauregard Parish.
“Right now our state is facing a very dangerous and unpredictable situation with lots of fires burning statewide, and we cannot afford to have any exceptions to the current burn ban,” said Edwards.
“Under normal conditions, prescribed burning is intended to be used as a land management tool, but these are not normal conditions and they are compounding the existing threat of wildfires due to the severe heat and drought we’re experiencing. Embers from a fire that has been put out can be blown miles away and flare up again in another area, which is why we need everyone focused on efforts to prevent more fires. They will tax the same firefighters and emergency responders who are working hard to extinguish the blazes that are currently threatening lives and property. While we don’t know how long we will be in this situation, we do know that by adhering to the burn ban we can lessen the chances of any other fires from starting.”
