Cleveland Community Fire Department

📢 Burn Ban Lifted! 📢

Effective at 8 a.m. Friday, May 8, the N.C. Forest Service has lifted a ban on all open burning for Alamance, Anson, Cabarrus, Chatham, Davidson, Davie, Forsyth, Gaston, Guilford, Iredell, Mecklenburg, Montgomery, Moore, Randolph, Rockingham, Rowan, Stanly, Stokes and Union counties.

🔥Burn Ban Remains in Effect: Rowan County🔥

Rowan County’s burn ban REMAINS in place until further notice, in conjunction with the North Carolina Forest Service. This is a unified decision between both authorities.

Even though many other counties across the state have lifted their bans, Rowan County HAS NOT. We are still seeing conditions and fire activity that justify keeping this in place.

To be clear:
* No outdoor burning is allowed
* The only exception is food preparation on a safety-certified grill

This applies everywhere:

* Within 100 feet of a structure (County Fire Marshal’s Office)
* Beyond 100 feet (N.C. Forest Service)

There’s no gray area right now—if it’s not a grill for cooking, it’s not allowed.

We don’t take keeping this in place lightly, but we’re making decisions based on what we’re seeing here locally—not what other counties are doing.

We’ll update you as soon as conditions improve. Until then, we need everyone’s cooperation.

-Rowan County Fire Marshals Office

Alot of valuable information can be learned from this post. We urge everyone to respect the burn ban and keep not just yourself, but your neighbors and our firefighters safe!

Since the state-issued ban on open burning was enacted March 28, a total of 554 wildfires has burned more than 2,200 acres across the state. With little rainfall or improvement expected over the next 7-10 days, the statewide burn ban and enforcement action will continue until further notice.

Of the 554 wildfires that have burned since the burn ban took effect, only four have been determined to be the result of lightning strikes. Preliminary data indicates that 152 of those 554 wildfires were determined to be human caused, with the remainder listed as unknown or undetermined, likely pending law enforcement investigation and action. Since the state’s burn ban took effect, 150 citations have been issued for illegal burning.

During a state-issued burn ban, the same N.C. Forest Service personnel providing initial and extended attack for wildfire response are providing the necessary enforcement action to support the ban on open burning. Reducing the number of new ignitions is critical for sustaining adequate resource availability for an extended period, making state-issued bans a necessary tool for keeping wildfires contained and as small as possible until fully extinguished.

The public is urged to abide by the burn ban and to use extreme caution with farm equipment, machines, mowers, vehicles on dry grass, smoking materials such as ci******es, anything that can throw a spark. In current high-risk conditions, these could be a possible fire source. While not classified as open burning and not affected by the state’s ban on open burning, they are still contributors to new fire starts across the state.

Read news release: https://www.ncagr.gov/news/press-releases/2026/04/14/statewide-burn-ban-and-enforcement-continue-dry-conditions-persist

Just an FYI, the burn ban is still in effect!!!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Burn Ban Issued for Rowan County

Salisbury, NC – In conjunction with the North Carolina Forest Service, the Rowan County Fire Marshal’s Office has issued a temporary ban on all outdoor burning.

Due to increased fire risk, on Saturday, March 28, 2026, the North Carolina Forest Service issued a ban on all open burning and canceled all burning permits for Rowan County.

A burn ban issued by the N.C. Forest Service applies to all open burning statewide, regardless of distance from an occupied dwelling.

To ensure county-wide compliance with this ban, the Rowan County Fire Marshal’s Office has issued a ban on all open burning.

During a burning ban, fire pits, yard debris/waste fires, and campfires are considered open burning. However, approved cooking devices on approved surfaces, such as grills and barbecues, are permitted.

Rowan County will continue to follow the guidance of the North Carolina Forest Service on termination of the ban. For questions related to outdoor burning within Rowan County, please contact 704-216-8920. For North Carolina Forest Service questions, please visit NCForestService.gov.

Due to increased wildfire risk, the N.C. Forest Service has issued a ban on all open burning and has canceled all burning permits statewide effective 6 p.m. Saturday, March 28 until further notice.

Under North Carolina law, the ban prohibits all open burning in the affected counties, regardless of whether a permit was previously issued. The issuance of any new permits has also been suspended until the ban is lifted. Anyone violating the burn ban faces a $100 fine plus $183 court costs. Any person responsible for setting a fire may be liable for any expenses related to extinguishing the fire.

The burn ban does not apply to fires started within 100 feet of an occupied dwelling. The local fire marshal has authority to issue a burn ban within those 100 feet.

Read news release: https://www.ncagr.gov/news/press-releases/2026/03/28/statewide-burn-ban-issued-north-carolina-due-hazardous-forest-fire-conditions

At approximately 11:30AM today, a disgruntled citizen made a threat to the Cleveland Community Fire Department.

The Cleveland Police Department and numerous other agencies responded immediately and conducted thorough searches of both Cleveland Fire Department locations. Authorities have confirmed that no evidence was found.

The suspect is currently in custody. Police and Fire officials have confirmed that there is no ongoing threat to the public.

We are grateful for the swift response by Cleveland Police Department, Rowan County Sheriffs Office, Rowan County Emergency Management, Iredell County Sheriffs Office, Cabarrus County Sheriffs Office, any others we may have missed

Further updates will be provided when additional information becomes available.

Annual Meeting
This Sunday, Feb 22nd.
Voting from 2-3pm
Meeting starts at 3pm

Are the main roads clear? Some are, but some are not.

Are the side roads clear? Hardly any as most are completely covered.

With understanding that everyone is suffering from a little cabin-fever, please slow down and use good judgement if you're tempted to travel about today.

***With the overnight low of 10º, practically everything will re-freeze for the morning commute. Make every effort to leave early and use extreme caution when heading into work!***