Rain may have reduced fire risk this weekend, but officials say caution is still warranted

POCATELLO – The elevated chance of fires breaking out due to Independence Day festivities was reduced by wet-weather conditions this holiday weekend.

The amount of fires and how severe they are varies from year-to-year and from city to city, but there’s always an elevated risk of fires starting while people are using fireworks. This year, eastern Idahoans experienced cloudy and rainy weather generally, reducing some of that risk.

“All the rain that we got Friday … put a damper on things,” Pocatello Fire Department spokeswoman Kim Stouse says. “It got a lot of the fuels really wet.”

Still, there were a number of fires throughout eastern Idaho over the weekend. EastIdahoNews.com spoke with multiple agencies to learn more.

The number of fires PFD responded to over the weekend isn’t clear, but Stouse says none of them were “major fires.”

“We did have a few calls where we had some dumpsters that were smoking from people discarding fireworks, but those were quick and easily cooled,” Stouse said.

The Idaho Falls Fire Department responded to eight fire calls from July 1 to July 7, with most of them likely related to fireworks.

There were two fire calls on July 4 related to used fireworks catching fire. On July 5, there was a structure fire and a wildfire on Iona Hill that burned 26 acres. While the structure fire was unrelated, the wildfire is suspected to have been caused by fireworks.

Nic White with Central Fire District in Jefferson County said that his department responded to just one fire on July 4. It was a construction dumpster fire. The cause is undetermined.

On July 5, a shrub in someone’s yard caught fire. It was out before the crew arrived.

In Madison County, firefighters responded to 10 calls on July 4, 5 and 6. While several of these were dumpster fires and brush fires, none of them became structure fires.

Investigations are underway to determine what caused them.

Chief Deputy Cody Gudmunson with the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office said firefighters only responded to one fire over the weekend. It was a structure fire in Ashton on July 4.

All of the officials EastIdahoNews.com spoke to agreed that rainy weather conditions helped to reduce the risk of fires breaking out over the weekend.

“The rain helped that day, especially because (we heard) a lot of fireworks that night,” White said. “Where it had rained pretty much the majority of the day, it helped curb that fire potential.”

In addition to fuel for potential fires becoming wet, Stouse pointed out that there were cooler temperatures and an increase in relative humidity, which generally makes it harder for fires to spread.

But even with these factors, the risk wasn’t completely eliminated.

The wet, humid conditions this weekend were not typical. The National Weather Service in Pocatello says conditions throughout July, August and September are expected to be around 60% to 70% above normal, with around 40% below normal precipitation.

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“The fires will probably pick up,” Gudmunson said.

Madison County Fire Department Chief Troyce Miskin pointed out that people launching fireworks can reduce the risk of fires and the amount of calls emergency responders receive by paying attention to their surroundings and being aware of where their fireworks may end up.

“We know that people enjoy fireworks. There’s a reason why people set them off, and it’s not because they’re trying to cause harm or damage or to annoy their neighbors,” Idaho Falls Fire Department spokeswoman Jessica Clements says. “We encourage people to do so in a way that is safe, that is legal and is considerate of others, whether that be stopping at a reasonable hour or realizing that your behavior may put someone’s home or life at risk.”