Campfire Safety

With Summer upon us, campers are heading out for weekends of family fun. A campfire is a necessity, at least for our family, when we go camping. There's nothing better than sitting by a campfire at night, sipping on a cold drink, eating smores, and just enjoying the outdoors with family and friends. While a campfire is lots of fun, there's a right way and a wrong way to have one. If not done properly, a campfire can easily get out of control and devastate the land and people in its path.

Here are a few good tips for having a safe and fun campfire while on a camping trip or even in your own back yard.

Learn how to safely start a fire. Never use flammable liquids to ignite or keep your fire burning. This means, avoid gasoline, diesel fuel, lighter fluid, and other dangerous fuels.

Only start a campfire in a fire pit or fire ring that is made of solid construction.

Avoid starting a fire underneath low-hanging branches or shrubbery. Fires can often flame higher then you anticipate.

Don't stack spare firewood too close. If you've recently gathered some, store it upwind so that sparks don't fly into your pile.

Don't allow children and pets near the campfire and never leave them unsupervised.

Teach kids how to stop, drop, and roll if their clothing catches fire. Have a fire extinguisher on hand for emergencies.

Keep your fire away from anything flammable, such as dry grass, tents, paper plates and napkins, and camping gear.

Be aware that hot embers can re-ignite the fire if strong winds are blowing. Shuffle the fire and make sure it's out before retiring.

Always have on hand things to put out your fire such as water, a shovel, and a fire extinguisher and make sure your fire is completely out before leaving it unattended.