Hermitage Burning Regulations
- Burning hours for the City of Hermitage are 6 a.m. to noon.
- Exclusion: Burning may be accomplished between the hours of 6:00 AM and 6:00 PM if the fire location is 300 feet away from any occupied building.
- Days of burning are Monday through Saturday.
- Prohibited Days: Sundays, Legal Holidays.
- Material that may be burned is limited to “ordinary household class A debris,” which is wood, paper, cloth, and related materials that do not create noxious odors and heavy smoke.
- Prohibited materials: Any material that creates noxious odors and heavy smoke, such as leaves, grass, shrubbery, and household garbage, or creates a justified neighborhood disturbance.
- All household burning must be in a container approved by the fire department. A five-foot square area around the burning container must be free of burned debris (maintained) and other combustible debris.
- Special burning permits may be issued by the fire department for material not considered household debris. Such permits will be issued for burning during the hours of 6 a.m. and noon, after which the fire must be allowed to burn out. There shall be no smoldering fires permitted after 6 p.m.
- No burning shall be permitted without a permit, except for the burning of household trash during the established burning hours.
- General conditions for burning with or without a permit are:
- No fire shall be permitted within 15 feet of any structure or property line. Burning on property lines is permissible when agreed to by adjoining property owners.
- No open flame or smoldering fire shall be permitted to burn unattended.
- No fire shall be started when wind or other factors are such to cause a hazardous or unsafe condition.
- No fire shall be started unless the permit holder has provided both manpower and equipment to extinguish the fire.
- Recreational fires for outdoor cooking are permitted. Bonfires for recreational cooking or outdoor camping may be no larger than 5 feet by 5 feet by 5 feet and burn no longer than three hours. The Fire Official may order the extinguishment of such when it is a nuisance.
- Applications for special burning permits, as called for in the Hermitage Fire Code, require a 10-day notification in writing to the fire department prior to the date of permit issuance. The 10-day notification period may be waived by the Fire Official.
- The Fire Official may issue or deny all special burning permit requests and assign conditions to the issuance of the burning permits.
- Warnings will no longer be issued for violations of the Hermitage Fire Code when a justified complaint is received by the enforcing agency. The violator will be:
- Advised to immediately extinguish the fire.
- Advised of the Hermitage Burning Rules and Regulations.
- Advised that a citation will be issued for the violation.
Hermitage Fire Code Ordinance
The listed rules and regulations for outdoor burning have been excerpted from Section F-300 of the Hermitage Fire Code Ordinance. The complete ordinance is available for review at the Hermitage Central Fire Station at 2511 Highland Road, Hermitage; or, contact the fire department at 724-342-0669.