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Don't Burn Stuff In Williamson County

bonfire
Image courtesy cobalt123 http://www.flickr.com/photos/cobalt/
Bonfires can be fun on a chilly November evening, but dry conditions have put the kibosh on bonfires in Williamson County.

A burn ban stopped Aggies from setting fire to their massive bonfire yesterday evening, and now dry conditions have prompted Williamson County to issue a burn ban of its own.

The ban was issued today at 1:30 and will remain in effect until further notice. It applies to any fire outside of an "enclosure" that contains all the flames and sparks. The ban can be enforced by any police officer.

The Bryan-College Station Eagle reported this morning how the 90-year A&M tradition of setting a huge stack of logs on fire was stifled by a burn ban in Robertson County, but the party went on regardless.

[A] crowd of what seemed to be a couple thousand gathered on the patch of land about 15 miles north of the Texas A&M campus off Old Hearne Road, wearing shirts that read "I Kill Trees" and "Keep College Station Normal" as local act Wicked River Band covered House of the Rising Sun.

You can see some video of the stack here.

Nathan Bernier is the transportation reporter at KUT. He covers the big projects that are reshaping how we get around Austin, like the I-35 overhaul, the airport's rapid growth and the multibillion dollar transit expansion Project Connect. He also focuses on the daily changes that affect how we walk, bike and drive around the city. Got a tip? Email him at nbernier@kut.org. Follow him on Twitter @KUTnathan.
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