Kansas at heightened wildfire risk; Kansas Forest Service suggests halt to harvesting

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – According to the Kansas Forest Service, weather and drought conditions have set the stage for potentially one of the worst wildfire years Kansas has seen in a long time. The service offers several suggestions to prevent a spark from becoming a wildfire, some of which could affect Kansas farmers.

That suggestion is to temporarily halt harvesting. The Kansas Forest Service attributes the heightened risk to three main factors: the drought, the Tuesday night freeze and a wet summer.

Jeff Varner was born and raised on a farm. He finished his soybean harvest Tuesday afternoon. He’s not harvesting during the suggested halt time but remains cautious. He calls this season “an anomaly.”

“Usually, we don’t end up with high wind and dry temperatures at this time of year,” Varner said. “We may carry a fire extinguisher or two with us.”

Rodney Redinger with the Kansas Forest Service has been feeling it too.

“We haven’t gotten that like, October, kind of break,” he said. “It’s just been, ‘go, go, go.'”

He says with water sources that firefighters could use to combat flames are largely reduced or gone. The dry weather makes tree lines, which would usually provide some protection against wildfires, burn faster. Once it freezes, extra growth from a wetter summertime also creates increased fuel. All these variables combined creates a perfect storm for wildfires.

“Realistic best case scenario, nothing gets catastrophic. Nothing Destroys homes, and people stay safe,” Redinger says.

He understands their recommended halt on harvesting could be a difficult ask for Kansas farmers.

“We can say all the things we want to right. You know, my paycheck doesn’t come from what’s out in that field,” Redinger says.

Even though he isn’t harvesting this week, soybean farmer Jeff Varner says some crops simply can’t wait.

“If it rains and they get and that bean gets wet, it swells, pops that pod open. [The] bean falls to the ground, and it’s unharvestable then. There’s no way to pick it up,” Varner said.

If a farmer can’t stop the harvest, the Kansas Forest Service has suggestions. Precautions like parking vehicles away from tall grass, holding off on controlled burns, and always ensuring you have a fire extinguisher nearby can go a long way in saving property and lives.

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