As we approach the month of April, I would like to remind all residents that there is open burning for one more month. Please call Air Quality 751-8144, before you burn. Be sure to have an adequate water supply and appropriate tools on hand when you burn.  Beginning May 1, 2015, a burn permit will be required for the months of May and June. From July 1 to Sept. 30, no burning will be allowed. Open burning will continue for the months of October and November. 

For the month of April, we will be doing classroom training as well as field exercises to prepare our firefighters for the wildland fire season. Hopefully, the first week in April we will burn the hillside north of the high school as part of our training. 

Owners can help reduce fire activity around their homes by doing fuel mitigation, removing pine needles from roofs and rain gutters, removing combustibles near homes and keeping their yards moist and green. 

As of March 30, Bigfork Fire Department responded to forty (40) incidents: Building fire (1), Dumpster fire (1), Land Medical Helicopter (1), Emergency medical service (1), EMS call, excluding vehicle accident with injury (24), Vehicle accident with injuries (1), Motor vehicle accident with no injuries (2), Standby (1), Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) (2), Public service (1), Defective elevator, no occupants (1), Dispatched and canceled (2), Smoke detector activation, no fire (1), Alarm system sounded, no fire (1).

—Wayne Loeffler, Bigfork Fire Department Chief