Prescribed burns of forest debris, halted during pandemic, back on with much work ahead

FORT BENNING, GA, UNITED STATES

03.04.2006

Photo by Markeith Horace 

Fort Moore Public Affairs Office

FORT BENNING, Ga. – In a March 2006 photo, a member of a Fort Benning woodland burn crew lays down fire during a controlled burn of unwanted foliage in one of the post's many military training areas. Each year from December through May, Fort Benning conducts expertly controlled burns of deadwood and other debris on the forest floor. Known as prescribed burns, the fires consume the debris so that if a wildfire got going there'd be less fuel for it to feed on, which also makes such fires easier to control and suppress. Before such burns are scheduled, officials here carefully study weather data, including forecasts as to wind direction, and choose the times and places to burn in ways that avoid to the extent possible smoke carrying to populated areas within or beyond Fort Benning. Burns had halted last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic but have since resumed, with burn crews working to catch up on burning, to include the acreage they couldn't burn last year during the pandemic.

• Date Taken: 03.04.2006
• Date Posted: 03.24.2021 15:04
• Photo ID: 6569477
• VIRIN: 200625-O-IE830-800
• Resolution: 1516x859
• Size: 462.91 KB
• Location: FORT BENNING, GA, US