County extends burn ban despite higher humidity in some areas

Travis County has extended its existing burn ban even though it has measured higher humidity in many areas. Fire Marshal Tony Callaway reported that along with humid areas, extremely dry pockets still exist. On a scale of 0 to 800, with 800 indicating zero humidity, some areas of Travis County are now as low as 18, indicating high humidity. “But we have some areas up to 768. I have never seen such a drastic reading as far as parts of the county differing since I started working here in 2005,” Callaway told the Commissioners Court Tuesday. “We still have some critical areas, and once we start to see some north winds and humidity levels drop again we will go back into a critical fire danger situation if we don’t get continuous rain in those areas.” Precinct 2 Commissioner Brigid Shea asked Callaway which parts of the county are driest. “It appears (the dry areas) are spotted throughout the county. We don’t have a clean line so I can’t say the northwestern or the southwestern is the driest portion.” The ban will last until Oct. 18 unless the county sees drastic shifts in humidity.