Montgomery County Rural Fire Dist. 1

03/21/2026

Most of the state is under an extreme fire danger, and we’re under a red flag warning. We are right on the verge of meeting enough criteria to put on a burn ban. So PLEASE don’t burn!

03/12/2026

Well, conditions have changed. This has officially become a county wide burn ban. It will expire in 3 days. Keep in mind that this is not based solely on wind and dry conditions. It includes events occurring across the state. Please share the information.

03/12/2026

OFFICIAL NOTICE OF BURN BAN

Effective: Immediately (Wednesday, March 11th at 9:00 PM)
Expires: Saturday, March 14th at 9:00 PM

Due to current environmental conditions that increase the risk of rapid fire spread, along with the fact that the vast majority of the state will be under extreme fire danger and red flag warnings, which limits the resources available to Montgomery County in the event of a large fire, a Burn Ban is hereby enacted effective immediately (Wednesday, March 11th at 9:00 PM) and will remain in effect until 9:00 PM Saturday, March 14th, unless otherwise extended or rescinded.

During this period, the following activities are prohibited:

· All outdoor burning, including brush piles, debris burning, and land clearing burns
· Open campfires and recreational fires
· Burning in barrels
· Any other open flame burning not specifically authorized

This burn ban applies to all of Montgomery County. Willful violation of a burn ban shall constitute a Class “A” misdemeanor, and any such person convicted of such violation shall be punished as provided by law therefore.

Residents are encouraged to remain vigilant and report any signs of smoke or uncontrolled fire immediately by calling 911.

Updates regarding the status of the burn ban will be provided as conditions warrant.

02/18/2026

!Burn Ban in effect until 3pm Saturday, Feb. 21st.!
Due to extreme fire danger, Montgomery County has issued a burn ban effective 3pm today until 3pm Saturday, Feb. 21. All outdoor burning, including but not limited to brush burning, trash burning, controlled burns, and campfires is prohibited and shall constitute a Class A misdemeanor.

04/01/2025

New event. Tornado Watch from 4/1/2025 5:02 PM to 4/2/2025 12:00 AM CDT for Montgomery County, KS.

03/12/2025

Please be mindful when burning. If you have a controlled burn this week, please make sure it is put completely out. Embers from controlled burns will easily start a fire in these. We strongly recommend not burning until conditions improve.

Very strong southwest winds will elevate the fire danger to very high and extreme across south central and eastern Kansas. Any fire that starts on Friday afternoon or early evening will be difficult to control. In addition, winds gusting 45 to 55 mph may cause some minor property damage.

12/03/2024

On Monday, December 2, 2024 at approximately 10:50 PM, the Independence Division as well as automatic aid from Independence Kansas Fire/EMS Department was dispatched to the Independence Community College dorms for a structure fire. First arriving units reported smoke and flame showing. Addition aid was requested from the Dearing Division Dearing Kansas Fire Department, Coffeyville Fire Department, and Cherryvale Fire-Rescue. Crews worked quickly to contain and extinguish the fire. Montgomery County S.O. KS was also on scene assisting with traffic as CR 4000 was shut down during the fire. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

10/28/2024

***BURN BAN IN EFFECT***

Effective immediately and for at least the next 7 days, Montgomery County is under a county wide burn ban due to high fire danger and extremely dry conditions. The County Commission will reevaluate the situation again next Monday.