HCFR again warns of the dangers of fire pits

Three manufactured fire pits used for recreational fires and cooking, contributed to two residential fires, and one woods fire recently in Hall County. The residential fires resulted in the destruction of two mobile homes and one single story home. EARLIER STORY. POSTED MARCH 19: UPDATE #2: Overnight mobile home park fire blamed on fire pit

All three incidents were deemed “accidental” and involved a fire pit that was not fully extinguished. Hall County Fire Rescue (HCFR) says the fires could have been prevented with proper precautions, something the county fire marshal pointed out following one of those fires.

Safety precautions to follow when using a fire pit include:

Never leave the fire unattended.
Have a water source nearby for quick extinguishment.
Surround the fire pit with noncombustible material such as brick
pavers, gravel, etc.
Do not use the fire pit when heavy or gusting winds are present, as
this can cause embers to blow out of the pit and rekindles if not
fully extinguished.
Ensure the coals are completely extinguished and cooled.
Before installation of a fire pit, consult a professional and follow all
manufacturer instructions.
Fire pits should be at least 25 feet way from any structure or
anything that will burn.
For more information on burn guidelines, visit hallcounty.org and find the
Hall County Fire Rescue page.

(HCFR photo: March 19 Countryside Village fire)

About the Author

Ken Stanford is Online News Editor for GLORY 97.5, a position he has held since August 2022.

Ken was born in Moultrie, Georgia, and says he knew from the time he was 5 or 6 he wanted to be a “radio announcer.” That dream was realized when he was hired by Moultrie radio station WMTM in 1960 at the age of 15 as a weekend disc jockey. A 1963 graduate of Moultrie (now Colquitt County) High School, he has spent his whole career in Georgia working for stations in Atlanta, Marietta, and Gainesville – most recently as News Director for 40 years at WDUN in Gainesville. He is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force Reserves.

Ken retired in 2011 but came out of retirement last year to help GLORY, on a part-time basis, beef-up its online news presence.

He is the recipient of many Associated Press awards and is a former judge of state and national Associated Press broadcast news contests. In 2005, he was presented with the Georgia Associated Press Broadcasters Association’s President’s Award for Excellence in Journalism and in 2019 was inducted into the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame.

He lives in Gainesville with his wife of 52 years, the former Sandra McKnight of Clio, Alabama, and they have one child, a daughter, Lisa, who lives in Cumming with her family.