Burn permits are issued under the authority granted by Nebraska State Statute 81-520.01 and are subject to the following rules and regulations adopted by the Southwest Rural Fire District:
- The fire SHALL BE ATTENDED AT ALL TIMES with sufficient means on hand to control the burning, until the fire has completely burned out. Burned brush, logs, or other solid materials must be covered with earth or thoroughly saturated with water before the attendant leaves the site.
- No building materials, treated lumber, railroad ties, plastics, rubber, oil, pesticides, other hazardous waste, hazardous materials or household garbage shall be included in the fire at any time.
- The fire(s) shall be at least 50 feet from your own building(s) and 300 feet from a neighboring building.
- Open burning will not be permitted if the wind conditions exceed 15 mph: any such permit that was previously issued will be considered invalid if the wind exceeds 15 mph.
- No fires shall be lit before and shall be extinguished prior to the times stated by the office issuing the permit.
- An authorized representative of the Southwest Rural Fire Department may conduct on-site inspections at any time. Failure to follow these provisions governing the burning may lead to the revocation of this permit.
- Any fire, which is out of control and results in the summoning of any fire department, is subject to possible legal action. The property owner and person supervising the burn accepts all financial responsibility for any costs Incurred (including fire suppression cost) if the fire becomes out of control.
- The fire may be extinguished by Southwest Rural Fire Department regardless of whether a permit is issued if: (1) in the opinion of the officer, the conditions have changed and have become too dangerous to allow an open fire to continue burning; (2) if complaints are received regarding the fire/smoke; (3) if any of the above conditions of this permit have been violated.
IF THE FIRE BECOMES OUT OF CONTROL, CALL 911 IMMEDIATELY.
Please fill out the form below to apply. If the form is not there, we are not issuing burn permits at this time and ask you try again at a later date
Please allow up to 24 hours for response
(Email response will be from a swfire.org email address; please add to your safe senders list or check your junk/spam email folders.)
Updated May 26, 2025 2200 hrs
We are grateful for the moisture. Looking at the National Weather Service – Valley weather forecast for the upcoming week for the Southwest Fire District. Sustained winds and wind gusts appear to be relatively low to permit some burning; therefore, permits will be issued this week. Larger brush piles (tree lines pushed up will need to wait), piles that are smaller than 20 ft x 20 ft and limbs at 4” or less in diameter will be permitted.
Detailed Forecast
Tuesday
A 30 percent chance of showers, mainly before 10am. Cloudy, with a high near 63. East northeast wind 6 to 9 mph. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Tuesday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 48. Northeast wind 5 to 7 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Wednesday
A 30 percent chance of showers, mainly after 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 68. Calm wind becoming northeast 5 to 8 mph in the morning. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
Wednesday Night
A 20 percent chance of showers before 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 49. North northeast wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Thursday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 74. North northwest wind 3 to 7 mph.
Thursday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 51. North wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Friday
Sunny, with a high near 80. West wind 3 to 8 mph.
Friday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 56. Northwest wind around 6 mph becoming light and variable.
Saturday
Sunny, with a high near 85. North northwest wind 6 to 10 mph.
Saturday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 58. West northwest wind 5 to 7 mph.
Sunday
Sunny, with a high near 88. West northwest wind 5 to 9 mph becoming south southwest in the afternoon.
Sunday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 60. South southwest wind around 7 mph.
Respectfully, Southwest Fire Chief