Cleveland Community Fire Department

🔥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

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

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!***