Kaibab National Forest may conduct pile burns during monsoon

In the coming weeks, the Kaibab National Forest may conduct prescribed pile burns across the Williams and Tusayan ranger districts if weather and fuel conditions are favorable. Residents and visitors might see smoke from some of these operations.

Although pile burning is typically conducted during the winter, the piles require a different combination of weather and fuel conditions to burn safely and effectively. During this monsoon season, fire managers will look for short windows when fuels are dry enough and temperatures are warm enough for the piles to burn completely, while higher humidity helps moderate fire behavior and wet grasses surrounding the piles help minimize the potential for fire creeping.