Fire danger alert called very high

MAT-SU — If you’re going to be out camping this Memorial Day weekend, make sure you’re extra careful with your campfire.

“Right now the forecast for Susitna Valley is under a red flag warning for lightening,” said John Murdock with the Mat-Su Borough Department of Emergency Services. “It will probably continue for Friday, maybe Saturday, don’t know that yet, but we’re supposed to be basically dry and warm all weekend.”

Dry, warm weather, while a boon to campers and outdoors enthusiasts, usually at this time of year has firefighting officials biting their nails. As of Thursday afternoon the fire danger was rated as “high” to “very high,” but hadn’t quite reached the level of “extreme.”

“Right now our fuels are drier than at any time than they have been this year,” Murdock said. “We’re right now really just going to kind of be just skating on a razor’s edge until we get some moisture.”

Fires burning in other parts of the state have stretched Division of Forestry resources thin. The borough was staffing up stations in the Talkeetna, Willow, West Lakes and Central Mat-Su fire departments. A lot of responders, he said, are going to be asked to give up their holiday weekends.

“We’ll make the decision regarding staffing (Friday) morning depending on what happens or does not happen vis-a-vis the forecast,” Murdock said Thursday. “I’ve been up here long enough to know that forecasts change fairly rapidly at times.”