Arkansas Forestry Commission: Fire Danger High

A tanker airplane has been used to dump water on six different fires in southern and central Arkansas, the state Forestry Commission said Aug. 1, warning that the danger of wildfires is now very high.

Sixteen Arkansas counties have imposed bans on outdoor burning, the agency said in a news release.

“With little significant rainfall in sight, Arkansas residents living in forested areas should begin taking measures to protect their homes from wildfire,” the commission said.

On July 30, the agency said, its firefighting crews and four volunteer fire departments battled a 102-acre wildfire north of Hot Springs that took more than eight hours to contain. The cause of the fire hasn’t been determined.

The 16 counties with burn bans in force are Clark, Cleveland, Columbia, Crawford, Dallas, Garland, Hempstead, Jefferson, Johnson, Lafayette, Lincoln, Nevada, Ouachita, Polk, Saline and Sebastian.