Resident Fined As Open Burning Persists In Vernon
VERNON, CT — Despite numerous warnings about open fires being banned in Vernon and the rest of the state, local authorities have responded to six burning cases since Halloween.
In one instance, a homeowner on Midland Drive was fined $99 for violating an open burning ordinance, Vernon Fire Marshal Dan Wasilewski said.
That fire took place at 3 p.m. Friday. The incident began with a fire pit, but the flames spread and eventually took out nearly an acre of land near a cluster of homes, he said. Firefighters were able to get a quick jump on the incident, or things could have been a lot worse, Wasilewski said.
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Connecticut has been under a Red Flag brush fire warning for nearly two weeks and Gov. Ned Lamont has issued a state of emergency. The lack of precipitation is the culprit.
Vernon already had had one sizable brush fire during the period.
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Waskilewski said the homeowner on Midland Drive claimed to be unaware of the burning ban, despite Wasliewski announcing the ban on social media, during media interviews and via official documents.
“It’s reached a level of frustration,” Wasilewski said. “We’ve made all efforts to get the word out, yet we are still responding to calls about open burning. I don’t know how else to get the word out.”
More fires will likely hurt residents in their wallets. Wasilewski said fire officials have been put into the position of “aggressively enforcing” the local burning ordinance. Permits have been suspended with the Red Flag status, so all open fires can be deemed illegal, he said.
In addition to the Midland Drive incident, Vernon firefighters responded to three open burning incidents on Halloween night, just hours after Wasilewski issued a plea to avoid fires that day.
On Saturday, firefighters responded to an open fire on Lilly Lane and on Sunday, there was an open burning complaint on Autumnwood Lane, he said
“That’s two a day and that’s not good,” Wasilewski said. “People need to understand this is serious.”
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