Some fire restrictions lifted by USFS in Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest

Bridgeport, Carson City, and Santa Rosa Ranger Districts on the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest have lifted their Stage 1 Fire Restrictions, but the Mountain-City-Ruby Mountains-Jarbidge Ranger District’s fire restrictions remain in place as do those in Lake Tahoe.

According to fire officials, decreasing daily sunlight, increasing fuel moisture levels, and cooler evening temperatures are responsible for lifting fire restrictions. However, the potential threat of wildfires remains, so they encourage the public to continue enjoying National Forest System lands responsibly by being very careful with any fire.

Forest users are reminded to be fire safe with all their outdoor activities, including ensuring that campfires are completely out. Leaving campfires unattended is a class B misdemeanor. Recreationist should follow these campfire safety tips:

Always abide by state and federal campfire restrictions.
Only adults should build and maintain campfires.
Keep tents and other burnable materials away from the fire.
Use existing fire-rings where it is safe to do so.
Clear vegetation and debris down to bare soil within 10 feet around campfire.
Use wood no bigger than the fire ring.
Never leave a campfire unattended. To extinguish it, keep a pail of water or shovel close by at all times.
Be certain your campfire is completely out before you go to bed or leave the area. Pour water on the fire and douse the site thoroughly. Stir the campfire until there are no embers and the ashes are cold to the touch. Remember, if it is too hot to touch, it is too hot to leave.

On the Mountain-City-Ruby Mountains-Jarbidge Ranger District, the following Stage 1 Fire Restrictions still apply until Oct. 31, 2018:

- Building, maintaining, attending, or using a fire (using wood, charcoal or any other material), campfire, or stove fire except a portable stove using gas, jellied petroleum, or pressurized liquid fuel outside of a developed fee campground or picnic area (except by special use permit). Charcoal burns longer and hotter than wood and may appear to be cold; however, embers can linger for hours.
- Smoking, except within an enclosed vehicle or at a developed campground or picnic area.
- Operating vehicles or other motorized equipment off \existing paved, gravel, or dirt roads. This includes all combustion engine without a spark arrestor on public lands within the Winnemucca District and Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest.
- Welding or operating an acetylene torch with open flames, except by permit.
- Using, or causing to be used, any explosive, except by permit.
- Possession or use of fireworks (always prohibited) or any other incendiary device.
- Use of tracer rounds, steel-core ammunition, or exploding targets, including Binary Explosive Targets while recreational shooting.

For more detailed information on fire restrictions on the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, visit:

http://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/htnf/alerts-notices