photo by: Chris Conde

Smoke fills the air after a grass fire at Baker University Wetlands on Monday, Feb. 14, 2022.

Douglas County fire crews have extinguished 15 grass fires this week, according to the chief of Consolidated Fire District 1, which responds to fires outside the Lawrence city limits.

In total, Consolidated Fire District 1 has seen 48 grass fires throughout the county since Feb. 1, despite cold weather and snow. Fortunately, property damage has been limited to several vehicles and has not reached any structures, said Mike Baxter, chief of the district.

“We are seeing record low moisture levels, and the vegetation is extremely dry,” Baxter said.

Under these conditions, it doesn’t take much to start a fire, and once a fire is started it is difficult to put out, he said.

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly declared a drought emergency on Thursday that listed Douglas County in a drought watch.

“These conditions are forecast to persist or get worse, so I strongly encourage Kansans to be mindful of drought conditions and work to minimize the threat of fires across the state,” Kelly said.

The governor’s warning came after a large grass fire started in central Kansas on March 5. The Cottonwood Complex wildfire in Reno County burned 35 homes, 92 outbuildings, 110 vehicles and left one person dead, according to a news release from the Hutchinson Fire Department. The fire lasted several days and burned across 12,000 acres before it was contained.

Douglas County crews were requested by Reno County to assist with the Cottonwood fire, but they were unable to make the trip because of snow and ice, Baxter said.

Residents with homes that may be exposed to wild grass fires are encouraged to create a defensible space around their property by limiting the amount of flammable vegetation near the home, Baxter said.

Anyone attempting to perform a prescribed burn is required to inform the county of their plans and to have enough help for the size of the area in case the fire gets out of control, Baxter said. They should also wait until the grass is green and should mow or till fire-break lines around the areas they plan to burn — and stay with the burn until it is completely extinguished, he said.

“We see a large amount of fires from rekindles two to three days after a landowner has conducted a prescribed burn and high winds cause embers to fly,” Baxter said.

As of Friday afternoon, no burn ban was in effect for Douglas County, according to the Burn Hotline.

The Journal-World reached out to Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical about fires within city limits but had not received a response by Friday afternoon.