County, in extreme drought, to enforce burn ban

Just days after fireworks lit the sky on the Fourth of July, Kendall County reinstituted its countywide burn ban.

No outdoor burning will be permitted in the unincorporated areas of the county until further notice. Violations of the burn ban could cost offenders $200 for a first offense and more for repeated violations.

Kendall County Commissioners Court’s unanimous vote Monday to begin enforcement of the burn ban came after Fire Marshal Brady Constantine reviewed the latest drought index figures showing the county above the 500-level threshold, signifying excessive countywide drought.

'The (Keetch-Byram Drought Index) was on an average of 525 this morning,” Constantine said Monday. “Other areas of the county are in the high 500s already.”

Constantine said his office looks at weather patterns and chances of precipitation that could dampen or lighten the index reading, which rested in the lowtomid-400s to open the month. There were hopes last week that a Hurricane Beryl trajectory could bring much-needed rain to the region, but that hope evaporated when Beryl turned toward the Houston-Galveston area.

Constantine said the ban will be in place for 90 days before it can be renewed if no measurable precipitation occurs.

It could be days or weeks, he said, “before we get any precipitation as a whole, enough to bring that index down, and it’s trending down.”

The nearly two inches of rain that fell June 19 and 20 did little but delay an inevitable spike in the drought index.

“It brought us down, to buy us some time. It went down for that 24-hour period,” he said.

But the prolonged dryness — with rainfall nearly 3 inches behind the yearly average through June — can’t be overcome with just a 1- or 2-inch overnight rainfall.

Constantine said his office will enforce the burn ban, initially by refusing any new permits for burns.

“This burn ban will be enforced. I hope people take it seriously,” he said. “As soon as something breaks out because someone gets reckless ... it’s my job to help be a part of the prevention on this side of it.”