With the arrival of hot weather Spokane county officials are now banning most open fires.
It's been a long time coming, but with temperatures in the 90s this week.
Officials, such as Spokane Valley Fire Marshal Greg Rogers, say it's time for a ban on many types of outdoor burning.
“You can't use campfires, you can't do open burning, you can't even use the open pits where you put the grate over it, with firewood," Rogers said.
The ban also includes burning of fields and yard waste.
Still permitted at this time is burning in manufactured portable outdoor devices like fireplaces or patio warmers with chimneys or cooking in charcoal and propane grills.
Rogers says the long spring-like weather we've had is likely to make the fire danger even worse this year.
“With all the moisture we've had a lot of stuff that has grown really high because we've had a balance of sun and moisture and we have a lot of grasses that are higher and we consider those flash fuels," he said.
Rogers says those fuels will start drying out as the hot weather continues, and can be volatile if ignited.
There are a patchwork of specific bans in other Washington counties. For your area, you can check the Department of Natural Resourceswebsite. In Idaho, similar information is visible on the Department of Environmental Quality website.