MAINE, USA — As the ground continues to dry and lose its snow cover, the threat of wildfires in Maine begins. This week marks the beginning of Wildfire Awareness Week across Maine.
"Preventing wildfires protects our economy and our environment, safeguards property and the safety of Maine people, and preserves our healthy, productive forests. Everyone can do their part to prevent wildfires in the State of Maine," Governor Janet Mills, D-Maine, said.
Last week, Mills declared the week of April 17-23 as Wildfire Awareness Week. According to Maine State Forester and Director of the Maine Forest Service Patty Cormier, there have already been 90 wilderness in Maine in 2022.
"Eighty-nine percent of Maine is forested, and this precious natural resource is ours to protect," Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Commissioner Amanda Beal said in a statement. "Wildfire Awareness Week is an important reminder that most wildfires in Maine are caused by people and are therefore preventable. I invite everyone to increase their awareness of the ways we can all work to prevent wildfires."
Each day around 9:00 a.m. the Maine Forest Service updates its wildfire danger report. You can view the wildfire danger in your area here.
"Anywhere is just as likely to get a wild land fire. It's all about staying vigilant making sure you're taking care of your fires, whether it's a small campfire or making sure you extinguish that cigarette properly," Gray Firefighter Bryce Neumann said.
Neumann added you always need to check the fire danger report before having a fire on your property, whether it's for a brush fire or just a small campfire.
"This time of year everything is brown and dry, so that fire is going to go right across [the] wood line, lawn, pretty quick. So if you can eliminate all of that vegetation that's combustible, it would really help in the weeks to come with wildfires," South Portland Firefighter Nick Whitmore said.
Whitmore urged everyone to make sure they have a burn permit before starting any fire on their property.
You can get a burn permit through the state, or your local fire department