Buncombe County lifts open burn ban Sunday after rainfall eases fire danger

Buncombe County’s open burn ban ended at 8 a.m. Sunday, giving residents back a limited right to burn yard debris after weeks of wildfire restrictions, but officials warned that normal is not back everywhere. The North Carolina Forest Service lifted the statewide ban for 81 counties after recent rainfall eased fire danger, while 19 counties remained under the restriction until further notice.

For Buncombe County, the change means leaves, brush and yard trimmings may again be burned at residences on designated burning days between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. Residents may burn only yard waste from their own yards, and open burning remains prohibited inside municipal limits, including Asheville and other Buncombe County municipalities. If a burn would take place within 500 feet of forestlands, a North Carolina Forest Service permit may still be required.

The county also stressed that the lifted ban does not erase every restriction. The state’s action does not apply to fires within 100 feet of an occupied dwelling, where local fire marshals still have authority. Buncombe County residents who need a permit must get a new one before burning; all permits issued before the ban were canceled when the statewide restriction took effect March 28.

Officials said the change came only after a stretch of dangerous conditions that had made open burning too risky. The statewide ban had been imposed at 6 p.m. Saturday, March 28, after hazardous forest fire conditions spread across North Carolina, including low humidity, gusty winds, dry fuels and drought severity. North Carolina Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler said the recent rainfall provided enough relief to moderate fire danger in the counties where the ban was lifted.

The caution is grounded in the numbers. Since March 20, N.C. Forest Service rangers have responded to 626 wildfires across the state, and at least 114 of those fires started after the statewide ban began. As of April 14, the state said 554 wildfires had burned more than 2,200 acres. North Carolina’s wildfire records date to 1928, with computerized records beginning in 1970, a reminder of how long the state has tracked fire risk and how quickly spring conditions can turn.

Buncombe has already spent much of the season under changing burn restrictions, including an earlier local fire-hazard ban before the statewide order. County officials urged residents to treat the reopening carefully, keep water or a fire extinguisher nearby, and check local conditions before lighting any fire. After a month of closures, the county is moving back toward normal, but only within the limits of fire safety.