The Chronicle-star combined with the Moss Point advertiser., 1948-10-22

control record in the history of
the Mississippi Forestry Com
mission was witnessed this past
fiscal year with 2.334,000 more
acres of forested land under the
protection of the state than in
the preceding fiscal year Albert
A. Leggett, state forester, an
nounces.
During the period from July
l, 1947 to June 80, l948 there were
38 counties comprising 8,453,000
acres of timbered land under pro-
lection and only 14l ,478 acres
were damaged by 5.264 fires
which represents 1878 per cent
of the total acreage, as compared
with the preceding fiscal year
when only 6,119,000 acres Of tim
bered land in % counties were
under protection and 1884
acres or 800 per cent of the total
were burned over, Forester Leg
EFT points out. He stresses that
while there were less fires IN
the l946-1947 period the average
size of the fires was 400 acres
which is much larger than the
average fire for the past fiscal
year which was 26.8 acres. He
gives as the reason for this low
er rate of burned acreage per
fire, better trained personnel,
more alert detection, swifter dis
patch of crews to the fires loca-
ton, and better fire suppression
equipment.
Counties in which no fires were
reported for the last fiscal year
are, Leflore, Sunflower and Wash
ington, all in the Delta section
of the state. Only one fire was
reported in Humphreys and va
zoo counties respectively where
seven acres burned in Humphreys
and nine in Yazoo.
Worst Record in Jackson County
Jackson county having 100000
protected acres of forest land re-
ported the most extensive fire
damage with 1910 acres burned,
or nearly five per cent of the
total acreage under protection.
Next in line was Hancock county
where 1886 acres out of a total
of 271,000 were burned or Abs
per cent. In Harrison county TO-
1919 acres were burned out of a
total of 235 900 acres under pro-
lection which represents 4.679
per cent.
During the 1946-1947 period
%, 1884 acres were burned in Jack
son county, 22,561 in Harrison
and 1882 in Hancock. A great
Improvement is recorded fol
George, Greene and Lauderdalt
counties with George dropping
from 16,202.5 acres. burned in
1946-1947 to Z, 1926 acres burned
in the last fiscal year. Greene
county which reported 12,059.7
acres burned in the 1916 -1947
period only had 6,157.7 acres
burned in the 1947-1948 year,
Lauderdale dropped from 49,
884.7 acres burned in l946-1947
to S, 088.5 in 1947-1948.
Calhoun reported a drop from
2894.5 in the earlier period to O.
595.7 during the last fiscal an
mum; Chickasaw dropped from
4,197 to 2,619.6; Clarke which ex-
perienced a damage to 6,503.5
acres in 1946-1947 reported only
4,739.8 acres burned in 1947-1948.
In Covington county 4,351.5 acres
were damaged by fire during the
last fiscal year against 5,848
acres for the preceding period.
Grenada reported 3,344 acres
damaged against 4,916 for the
preceding year. Itawamba drop
ped from 5,6l2 in 1e46-1947 to
1850 acres in the last year. A
large improvement is noted in
Jasper county where fire damage
dropped from 8,724 acres in 1896
l947 to only $1,000 this last year.
Jefferson Davis county, another
hot spot in 1946-1947 with 6.216
acres damaged, reported only g.
691..5 acres burned over during
the last fiscal period.
Jones county dropped from g.
$685. acres burned over in the
preceding period to 4,417.4 dur
ing the last fiscal year. A large
decrease in acreage burned is re-
corded for Kemper county where
6,254.7 acres were burned in 1896
1947 againsl only 3,768.5 for the
last period. Newton county inn
prouoJ from A Eat = acwae law