Use Caution When Celebrating Fourth Of July This Weekend

With residents and visitors taking to the Kenai Peninsula for a long holiday 4th of July weekend, authorities are asking you to pack some precaution wherever you go this weekend. The smoke impacting the Kenai Peninsula is coming from wildfires in the interior, which triggered an air quality advisory in effect through Friday, July 1.

Brenda Ahlberg, Emergency Manager with the Kenai Peninsula Borough Office of Emergency Management tells KSRM that with there’s also worry that fireworks launched for the holiday could trigger a wildland fire because of how dry it’s been:

“Fireworks are forbidden within the Kenai Peninsula Borough outside of the boundaries of the city, however, the cities, its my understanding, are not allowing fireworks. Of course, some cities have different nuances to that. They have public displays, right? They may have those already set and coordinated. I know Seward has theirs coming up the Fourth of July. With regard to the Borough outside of the boundaries of the cities, fireworks are forbidden.”

Ahlberg adds:

“It is incredibly dry. We’re certainly working jointly this year. All of the fire chiefs do a great job working jointly together anyways particularly during this season and putting out a reminder to everyone that fireworks are not allowed because it’s very dry and crispy out there. I want to recognize the fact that the majority of folks are doing the right thing, they really are trying to do the right thing and being responsible, but when you’ve just got those couple of people and the next thing you know, we’ve got ourselves a little bit of a fire start in green, what people think are green grass and it’s not. You get into those roots and the fire starts skunking around in what’s very dry duff.”

A reminder that there are burn suspensions in place for the Kenai Peninsula due to lack of precipitation. The suspension also will prohibit all burning requiring a permit, both large and small scale.