Firefighters in El Paso County expect 25% less moisture this fire season

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Firefighters in El Paso County are expecting drier drought conditions as wildfire season approaches.

Lieutenant Mitchell Rowley, who works for the Colorado Springs Fire Department, says people will have to help prevent wildfires.

"Generally they're started by us," he said. "Most of them are human started."

Rowley says many wildland fires can be prevented by not throwing cigarette butts outside and not starting open fires near dry brush.

Getting people to follow fire restrictions and avoid igniting fires will be especially important this season since firefighters don't see much moisture coming into the county.

"It's about 25 percent less moisture than we were expecting for what's normal in Colorado," Rowley said. "It looks projected for June and July to be hotter and drier than normal. So we're actually expecting a little bit of a ramp up in our fire season."

The CSFD website has more information on outdoor burning guidelines.