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Contact: Eve West, 304-719-6364
Glen Jean, West Virginia —New River Gorge National Park and Preserve Fire Managers plan to burn approximately 40 acres sometime between April 17 and May 31 in the Grandview area of the park near the Grandview Visitor Center. Wind speed and direction, humidity, and other factors will be considered to determine the exact date of the burn. The prescribed burn area is located east of I-64, approximately five miles off exit 129. The burn will be expected to take several hours to complete.
The purpose of this prescribed burn is to prevent the transition of the field into a closed canopy forest, a process that would displace declining grassland bird species. The park’s preferred management tool is to use prescribed fire to maintain the field while still promoting the establishment of tall grass species favored by grassland nesting birds.
A prescribed burn is a planned fire. This planned fire has a set of parameters that define the desired weather and fuel conditions under which a prescribed burn can be initiated. Before implementing this burn, the fire manager will evaluate current conditions and will only begin ignition if the prescribed conditions are within those parameters.
The burn is not expected to interfere with traffic flow on County Road 9 North, the road to Grandview.
For more information, please contact New River Gorge National Park and Preserve Fire Management staff at (304) 465-6529.
Last updated: April 15, 2021