The Forest Service announced Friday that extreme drought conditions have prompted Forest Supervisor Carl Petrick to sign a fire closure order throughout Alabama’s Bankhead, Conecuh, Talladega and Tuskegee National Forests.
The closure order will restrict the public from using fire or building campfires on the national forests except those within developed recreation areas that are confined to receptacles designed for fires. Commercially available fuel stoves (camp stoves) and backpacking stoves are excluded from the restriction. The Forest Supervisor’s order also prohibits using fireworks or other pyrotechnic devices in national forests.
The restrictions will remain in effect until Dec. 31, 2016.