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Fire danger on the Wind River Reservation is high

The Wind River Reservation has had 15 fires so far this year. In 2021, fire restrictions were in place from June till October.
Wind River Agency
/
BIA
The Wind River Reservation has had 15 fires so far this year. In 2021, fire restrictions were in place from June till October.

Fire restrictions are to be in effect until December of this year or until conditions improve. Officials say fire danger is very high, and could quickly become extreme.

Campfires, fireworks, or burning brush to clear away grass is not allowed.

Micheal LaPoint is with the Bureau of Indian Affairs Forestry and Fire Management. He said there have been 15 fires on the Wind River Reservation this year.

“In the last couple years we've had fewer fires on the reservation and the public has been really good on everything,” he said.

There are exceptions for ceremonial purposes like sweats, and burn barrels with coverings.

LaPoint said most fires on the reservation are caused by burn barrels.

“Just be careful. We are dry, extremely dry. And if you're burning in your burn barrel, make sure it has a screen on top and make sure that you're inspecting your burn barrel does not rusted through it,” he said.

LaPoint also said to clear the surrounding 10ft if using a burn barrel during fire restrictions this summer.

Taylar Dawn Stagner is a central Wyoming rural and tribal reporter for Wyoming Public Radio. She has degrees in American Studies, a discipline that interrogates the history and culture of America. She was a Native American Journalist Association Fellow in 2019, and won an Edward R. Murrow Award for her Modern West podcast episode about drag queens in rural spaces in 2021. Stagner is Arapaho and Shoshone.
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