Western North Carolina is in a severe drought that could continue for some time. Early in the week town made a Stage 1 Water Use Reduction declaration. On Tuesday, it was upgraded to a mandatory Stage 2. Citizens are being asked to reduce unnecessary water use by 10% from what their last month’s bill reported. No outdoor watering of impervious surfaces is permitted. Irrigation of lawns can be done from 8 pm to 8 am and no more than a half inch of water per week.
Given the several active fires in the area, the town has also issued an emergency declaration that bans all outdoor burning. The Highlands Police Department will strictly enforce this ban.
These two declarations and recommendations are posted on the town website at Highlandsnc.org. Organizers of this weekend’s Highlands Food and Wine Festival have been notified so our visitors will be aware of the situation. Signs are posted in town also.
The Highlands fire district is consequently very dry. Fire Chief Gearhart is very concerned and has crews on high alert. There are currently several large forest fires active in Western Carolina, and last week, there was a brush fire in the Cashiers fire district and one in the Highlands fire district.
The brush fire in the Highlands area was caused by a flare-up of coals and ashes from an outdoor burn pile that was supposedly extinguished two weeks ago. High winds caused the flare-up of the smoldering coals and the resulting fire.
Last year, there were five fires in the district caused by improper disposal of fireplace ashes and coals from inside the home. If these ashes are to be disposed of outside, be sure to place them in a metal can and fill the can with water to ensure the coals are completely out. In the five fires caused by indoor fireplace ashes, this simple procedure was not followed.
We all have to conserve water and practice strict fire prevention procedures during this drought emergency. Please report any suspected outside burning activities to 911. Our police and fire departments will respond.
Congratulations to the five candidates who ran for the three open seats on the town board. It was a good election. We should all appreciate those folks who are willing to serve as elected officials whether they win or not. Believe me, from experience, an election campaign is a hard process to go through.
I also want to thank the voters who took the time to cast their ballots. Voting is a responsibility of citizenship. For those who didn’t make the effort to vote, I have a message on this approaching Veterans Day. Veterans who were once GIs serving this country did it in the spirit of protecting our nation and our freedoms. They served in part so citizens could go to the polls and vote for whomever they believed was the best candidate. What I value about the voting process is that no one is holding a gun at a voter’s head demanding they vote for a candidate. A voter can cast a ballot and never tell anyone who they voted for. That freedom doesn’t happen everywhere in the world. So, when a person is negligent in casting a vote, they also send a message to all those veterans, a statement of not caring. On this Veterans Day, we honor those who did care; they cared about this country and served.
I look forward to working with our newly elected commissioners, Brian Stiehler, John Dotson, and Jeff Weller. Working with Amy Patterson and Eric Pierson, the board will have a full agenda to cover in the coming year.