Labor Day fire danger warned for mountains

Friday, Sept. 3, 2004 | 9:40 a.m.

As Southern Nevada residents prepare for picnics, camping and hiking during the Labor Day weekend, a red flag warning for fire was issued for the Spring Mountains.

The National Weather Service issued the red flag warning Wednesday and expected to extend it throughout the weekend because there is no rain in the forecast, meteorologist Charlie Schlott said.

There has been no rain for three weeks in the mountains west of Las Vegas, adding to the parched landscape baking in its fifth year of drought, he said.

Although temperatures are expected to drop 10 degrees or more in Southern Nevada, there is no chance of rain, Schlott said.

A stray match, wayward cigarette or illegal campfire could spark a wildfire in the Spring Mountains, Forest Service fire manager Dewey Warner says.

The Weather Service predicted breezy to windy conditions, which will bring cooler temperatures and higher humidity levels, Warner said.

Still, dead trees and grasses offer tons of fuel from an unexpected spark, Warner said.

Residents living in Cold Creek Canyon, Kyle Canyon, Mountain Springs and other mountain retreats have some protection, Warner said.

From April 15 to Nov. 15, no open flames are allowed within a mile of a home, Warner said.

"We haven't had any moisture since the last storm," Duffy Grismanauskas, a 30-year veteran Clark County firefighter and Kyle Canyon resident, said. "So things are getting dry again."

Federal agencies such as the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management are expecting to lift fire restrictions in the mountains on Tuesday.

Until then, however, Grismanauskas said that something as simple as smoldering campfire coals outside designated picnic grounds could send a wall of flames through the forests of pinyon and Ponderosa pine trees.

Elwood Miller, executive coordinator of the Nevada Fire Safe Council, published a list of fire safety tips for anyone going to the mountains this weekend.

Outdoor fire safety tips include:

For further questions, check with Forest Service rangers located on Kyle Canyon Road leading to Mount Charleston.