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Cold April doesn’t affect spring wildfires in Michigan

Flickr User Lou Angeli
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https://flic.kr/p/4wehdh

Despite the record cold April Michigan experienced, spring wildfire season is here.

Spring wildfires hit the state in late March, but came to a halt during the heavy snowfall mid-April. The snow didn’t last however, and fires picked up again soon after it melted.

Jim Fisher is the state wildland fire supervisor.

“Number one cause is debris burning where folks are cleaning up their yard and their burning their brush and it gets away from them, that’s about a third of our fires. Then the other ones are a mix of mostly human caused fires such as equipment or campfires or smoking or those kinds of things, and about two percent are caused by lightning.”

Fisher said wildfires are more likely in spring due to dry brush that emerges in the spring thaw.

He said wildfire season typically runs from the end of March until early June.