The Alaska Division of Forestry is rescinding a statewide burn suspension for all areas of the state except the Kenai Peninsula. The end of the burn suspension comes in part because of the rainy Memorial Day weekend.
The burn suspension was put in place on May 1 due to what forestry officials were calling "extremely dry conditions." Those dry conditions, on top of the travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, worried fire officials because it limited their ability to bring in firefighters from the Lower 48 to assist with wildfires.
“Working with DHSS, we now have a system in place that increases the likelihood of getting assistance from the Lower 48,” Alaska Division of Forestry Wildland Fire and Aviation Program Manager Norm McDonald said. “That, combined with the rain that fell over the weekend, prompted us to re-evaluate the current need for a burn permit suspension.”