Fire danger conditions in East Tennessee continue to deteriorate. Due to fire weather danger and multiple fires across the East Tennessee area, the following counties will not be issuing permits today: Anderson, Blount, Campbell, Carter, Claiborne, Cocke, Grainger, Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, Hawkins, Jefferson, Johnson, Knox, Loudon, Monroe, Morgan, Roane, Scott, Sevier, Sullivan, Unicoi, Union and Washington.

These restrictions include our online system available at burnsafetn.org, as well as call in requests to Division of Forestry offices in the listed counties. By state law, persons doing outdoor burning from Oct. 15 through May 15  are required to obtain a free burn permit from the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, Forestry Division. Part of the purpose for the permit system is to give safety information and weather alerts to those doing outdoor burning, and to limit or restrict burning if the fire danger becomes too high. This is part of the state fire prevention efforts, as we attempt to reduce fires, and costs associated with wildfire. 

For more details, please see the weekend edition of the Newport Plain Talk.