Fire marshal urges burn ban as drought index rises; commissioners delay decision two weeks

Keith King, Cook County fire marshal and emergency management coordinator, asked the commissioners to consider a county burn ban after reporting the county’s drought index — referred to in the meeting as KBDI — had climbed to about 609 and the fire district had responded to 31 fires since Aug. 10, including 14 in the previous seven days. King told the court the index had been rising roughly 0.9 points per day and that, despite some rain in recent days, vegetation and “fuel” remained dry. “My recommendation as the court is to consider a burn ban for Cook County,” he said. Commissioners pressed for local fire-department input; King reported he had contacted departments and that at least one department was “fine without it” while he awaited responses from two others. Commissioners discussed operational trade-offs: a burn ban would reduce the likelihood of human-caused escapes but could increase roadside trash accumulation and public frustration. One commissioner suggested deferring action while monitoring weather and fire activity; others requested that King solicit formal recommendations from the county’s volunteer fire departments before the next court meeting. The court decided to revisit the issue in two weeks, with King agreeing to brief the commissioners on updated KBDI readings and fire-department feedback. No burn ban was enacted at the meeting.