Kerr County commissioners on Monday adopted an order to reinstate more localized management of outdoor burning, delegating authority to precinct commissioners while retaining several safety restrictions.

Judge Kelly summarized the post-flood process that previously defined an "affected area" along the floodway and explained that commissioners had authority to lift or impose burn bans for their precincts. The proposed order, introduced by staff, maintains restrictions such as prohibiting burning at night, limiting start times to daylight hours, and requiring burning to end before sunset; it also includes a wind-speed cutoff (surface winds more than 23 mph are a prohibition trigger).

A commissioner moved to authorize Judge Kelly to sign the presented order. During discussion, commissioners noted the county’s extreme geographic and rainfall variability — one area of the county may have several inches of rain while another area remains dry — and stressed the importance of consulting local volunteer fire departments and the county burn-ban hotline before conducting burns.

The court approved the order unanimously and asked staff to publish clear guidance and keep the county website and hotline up to date. Commissioners warned that residents who burn without checking the hotline risk fines and that volunteer fire departments may be dispatched to put out unsafe burns.