Bell City, LA (KPLC) – A case of illegal burning in Bell City Tuesday night was at first thought to be a house fire on Alta Road just south of Sidney Derouen Road on a residential property.
Authorities were dispatched to a house fire they call, upon arrival they learned it was a torn-down home that had been intentionally set on fire.
“We were called out for a hose fire. We have four departments out working it. All it is really is a house that was torn down and somebody decided it was easier to burn it instead of haul it to the dump,” Ward 2 assistant fire chief Tom Leonards said.
Firefighters were still working to calm the fire when 7News arrived on the scene just before 11 p.m. A neighbor said that the home debris had been burning for hours before someone called it in thinking it was more than a trash burn.
“It’s illegal to burn anything except limps, trees, leaves. That’s it. Two-by-fours, trash, anything – that’s illegal in Calcasieu Parish,” Leonards said.
Calcasieu Parish Sheriff Deputies were also dispatched to the fire. CPSO did issue a misdemeanor summons to the person who set blaze to the structure for a violation of a Calcasieu Parish Ordinance – prohibiting outdoor burning.
Not only is it illegal, Leonards said burning things such as a house can be dangerous.
“They have plastic, they have wires, they have shingles, they have other materials that put off toxic gases and smoke. You can see the smoke; the whole area’s smoked up,” Leonards said.
He adds that illegal burning can even cause a strain on resources.
“You can see all the vehicles out here,” Leonards said. “And if something really bad happens, we have most of our resources right here and that’s one thing. The second thing is, I mean, the smoke going into other peoples houses and toxic gases and stuff.”
As a reminder, those who engage in illegal burning can face fines.
Sec. 8-41. – Prohibition against outdoor burning.
No person shall cause or allow the outdoor burning of waste material or other combustible material on any property owned by him or under his control except as provided in section 8-43.
(Ord. No. 4226, § 3, 10-5-00)
Sec. 8-42. – Exceptions to prohibition against outdoor burning.
(a) Outdoor burning of waste material or other combustible material may be conducted in the situations enumerated below if no public nuisance is or will be created and if the burning is not prohibited. The burning shall be in compliance with other applicable laws and with regulations and orders of governmental entities having jurisdiction, including air control regulations and orders. The authority to conduct outdoor burning under this regulation does not exempt or excuse the person responsible from the consequences of or the damages or injuries resulting from the burning.
(1) The burning of leaves, grass, twigs, branches, and vines by a private property owner on his own property for non-commercial purposes, provided the property owner attends the burning of yard waste at all times.
(2) Outdoor burning in connection with the preparation of food.
(3) Campfires and fires used solely for recreational purposes or for ceremonial occasions, provided fire is attended.
(4) Fires purposely set to forest lands for a specific forest management purpose in accordance with practices acceptable to the Louisiana Forestry Commission.
(5) Fires purposely set to agricultural lands for a specific management purpose in accordance with practices acceptable to the Louisiana Department of Agriculture.
(6) Outdoor burning in a rural park or rural recreation area of trees, brush, grass and other vegetable matter for game management purposes in accordance with practices acceptable to the Louisiana Parks and Recreation Commission and the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission.
(7) Small fires, by tradesmen and contractors, in such activities as street repair, installation or repair of sewer, water, electric, telephone mains, and services.
(8) The operation of contrivances using open flames such as welding torches, blow torches, portable heaters, and other flame making devices.
(9) Outdoor burning, in other than rural park or rural recreation areas, of trees, brush, grass, and other vegetable matter from such area in land clearing and right-of-way maintenance operation if the following conditions are met:
a. Prevailing winds at the time of the burning must be away from any city or town, the ambient air of which may be affected by smoke from the burning;
b. The location of the burning must be at least 100 feet from any dwelling other than a dwelling or structure located on the property on which the burning is conducted;
c. Care must be used to minimize the amount of dirt on the materials being burned;
d. Heavy oils, asphaltic materials, items containing natural or synthetic rubber, or any materials other than plant growth which produce unreasonable amounts of smoke may not be burned, nor may these substances be used to start a fire;
e. The burning may be conducted only between the hours of legal sunrise and legal sunset, and piles of combustible material should be of such size to allow complete reduction in this time interval;
f. The burning must be controlled so that a traffic hazard is not created as prohibited by section 8-44.
(10) Fires purposely set as a part of an organized program of drills for the training of firefighting personnel or for testing firefighting materials or equipment if the following conditions are met:
a. The duration of the burning is held to the minimum required for such purposes;
b. The burn is controlled so that a traffic hazard is not created as prohibited by section 8-44.
(11) Outdoor burning of waste hydrocarbon products from petroleum exploration, development or production companies, natural gas processing, such as, but not limited to, basic sediments, oil produced in testing an oil well, and transport of the waste products for sale or reclamation or to dispose of them lawfully in some other manner. In addition, hydrocarbons spilled or lost from pipeline breaks or other transport failures which cannot practicably be recovered or be disposed of lawfully in some other manner, may be outdoor burned at the site where the spill occurred or at another place due to safety considerations. Except when the immediate or continuous burning of hydrocarbon spills is reasonably necessary to abate or eliminate an existing or imminent threat of injury to human life or significant damage to property, the outdoor burning shall be conducted under the following conditions:
a. The location of the burning must be one hundred (100) feet from any residence and/or not adjacent to a city or town or in such proximity thereto that the ambient air of the city or town may be affected by smoke from the burning;
b. The burning is conducted only between the hours of legal sunrise and legal sunset;
c. The burning is controlled so that a traffic hazard is not created as prohibited by section 8-44.
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