BLM announces seasonal fire restrictions for southern California

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. - The Bureau of Land Management California Desert District will go into seasonal fire restrictions on public lands in Imperial, southern Inyo, eastern Kern, Los Angeles, eastern Mono, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and San Diego counties. The seasonal restrictions will remain in effect from April 15 to October 29, unless terminated sooner.

"These seasonal restrictions help safeguard public land visitors, communities, adjacent private lands and natural resources from wildfire risk," said BLM California Desert District Fire Management Officer Paul Gibbs. "We encourage the public to stay informed of fire restrictions and help keep your public lands safe.

The seasonal Fire Prevention Order established stage I and stage II fire restrictions across the California Desert District, as shown on the online map. The elevated restrictions apply to activities involving campfires, controlled-flame devices, recreational target shooting, and smoking on public lands.

The order prohibits recreational target shooting on BLM-managed public lands within San Diego, eastern Kern, western Riverside, western San Bernardino and eastern Los Angeles counties. Recreational shooting restrictions do not impact hunting.

The actions prohibited by the seasonal Fire Prevention Order are in addition to acts already outlined in the statewide Fire Prevention Order and the California Desert District Year-round Fire Restrictions.

The public is reminded to follow these precautions:

• Always have a five-foot circle cleared around your campfire and have a California Campfire Permit.
• Always have a shovel and plenty of water on hand and put your campfire DEAD OUT, before leaving.
• Never use steel targets, steel jacketed, steel core or incendiary ammunition for recreational shooting as these more likely to cause a fire.
• No campfires or recreational target shooting during any Red Flag Warning or Fire Weather Watch.
• Park vehicles away from areas where exhaust could ignite grass or other combustible material.
• If you are asked to evacuate, please do so immediately.
• If you plan to mow your yard or clear weeds, please do so early in the morning and on cooler days with no wind.

Violation of this order is punishable by a fine of up to $100,000 or imprisonment of up to 12 months, or both. The public can find additional information about wildfire on CAL FIRE's website.

For more BLM information about wildfire prevention, please contact the California Desert District Office at 951-697-5200; Barstow Field Office at 760-252-6000; El Centro Field Office at 760-337-4400; Needles Field Office at 760-326-7000; Palm Springs-South Coast Field Office at 760-833-7100; or Ridgecrest Field Office at 760-384-5400.