Officials: Sparks could start wild fire in Fayette

With an eye toward the coming July 4th holiday and the area’s current drought, Fayette County fire officials are asking residents to take extra caution to prevent wildfires.

The extreme drought, combined with fireworks displays, could lead to brush and wild land fires that could endanger lives and property, said Fayette County Fire Marshal Capt. David Scarborough.

Sparks from legal and illegal fireworks can smolder at first but minutes or hours later can be the catalyst of a fire that under current dry conditions could spread quickly, officials said.

Residents are being asked to use only legal fireworks and to do so with caution, according to Capt. Pete Nelms of the Fayette County Department of Fire and Emergency Services.

Anyone who sees or suspects a brush fire should call 911 immediately so it can be extinguished, Nelms said.

Some safety tips for fireworks include:

•ˇFireworks should be used only by adults

• All materials must be fully extinguished before leaving the area before leaving

• Also before leaving, the area should be surveyed on foot several times to make sure fireworks have not strayed from the area where they could possibly start a brush fire.

Officials said legal fireworks, which can be purchased at local stores, do not have a loud noise or bang. Fireworks bought out-of-state, however, stand a pretty good chance of being illegal under Georgia law, officials said.

Fayette fire crews have been fortunate to have a handle on brush fires in large part due to quick response to the scene, officials said. But the wild fires in south Georgia have consumed an area twice the size of Fayette County, officials said.

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