Tell fire departments and state agencies the name of the fire boss, the person in charge of a burn, who will request assistance should a problem develop. The fire boss decides when and how a burn is conducted. Consider the impact of smoke on surrounding areas. Do not burn an area if smoke will envelop a highway, airport, hospital, nursing home, school in session, or residential area. Generally, burns should be conducted only during the day because nighttime temperature inversions frequently hold and spread smoke along the ground.
Visibility is usually near zero in smoke, creating a severe traffic hazard.
Smoke can kill people with respiratory problems when they cannot quickly escape it. Conducting a burn is frequently simpler than planning and preparing for it. A typical burn begins with lighting a backfire along the downwind perimeter of a burn. A backfire moves slowly and with relatively low flames because it burns into the wind. When the backfired portion of the burn is safe, flank fires are generally lit beginning at the backfire along burn perimeters parallel with the wind.