If monsoon season isn't bad enough - during those very same months - it is fire season!

HUH - how can that be? Well, unlike the green areas of the north & east - the water doesn't penetrate the ground out here - and simply run's off! THAT is why we have the floods - but it is also why we have fires. The shrubbery that we do have, uses what water it can catch, grows as much as it can, and then dies back to conserve what little water it has left. Unfortunately, this dead growth is the best tinder for a fire around - and one hot ember from a cigarette can cause a fire that takes out thousands of acres of wilderness.

There are typically Fire warning signs at entrances to wilderness areas pointing out the degree of danger - but - if it's summer - it's fire season!

The area surrounding Las Vegas, and for that matter the entire state of Nevada has some of the most incredible wild lands you've ever seen! From the Great Basin National Park, Lake Tahoe, Red Rock Canyon, and the Lake Mead National Park - PLEASE do take some time to experience these natural wonders.

BUT - do us all a favor - and be careful. You're in the desert which means very little if any rain fall - AND - with our very hot and dry summers - all that vegetation you see is like explosive tinder when exposed to any kind of flame. So do us and yourself a favor while your out there enjoying our desert views...

• If you smoke - please do not do it outside of your car, or enclosed building. Even the ash from a lit cigarette can start a wildfire that can take out thousands of acres of wild lands.
• DO NOT build a fire or use a stove fire outside of a building with an area meant for that purpose. Check to see that any fireplace has a screened flue to prevent sparks from traveling and that it is in place
• If your off road and need to repair your vehicle, DO NOT use a welding, acetylene torches or anything else with an open flame to repair your vehicles - unless you are in a designated permitted area.
• PLEASE do not target shoot, use tracer ammunition outside of a designated shooting range - there are plenty of them out there - so don't take the chance getting caught in a flash over just to get a few shots off!
• And PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE no fireworks - legal OR illegal. The fire damage that you could cause to our wildlife and the very good possibility of you getting caught without an escape route are very high! Don't chance it.

IF YOU SEE SMOKE - PLEASE CALL 911 IMMEDIATLY and report your position (street / cross street, mile marker etc...) If caught soon enough - the life you save maybe your own.

Lightning Safety:

It's noon, but it's almost dark as night - you can see the flashes of lightning and hear the booms of thunder, but theirs not a drop of rain! Welcome to a "DRY" lightening storm! These storms, like most of our storms are usually short in duration - BUT - lightening storms - dry or not are some of the most dangerous storms we experience here in the valley! These are the fire starters in the western United States, and have been responsible for igniting fires, burning thousands and thousands of wild land acres in Arizona, California and Nevada!!

Did you know that a single "spark" of lightning, can reach over 5 miles, reach temperatures of 50,000 degrees fahrenheit, and carry 100 MILLION volts of electricity? It's totally random - no one can tell you when, if, how or where lightening will form or strike - it's chaotic - when it does form, there is still no predicting what it will do! Lightening rods? So What!! Rubber tires? Yeah so!!!! NOTHING is 100% Guaranteed safe, or will protect you 100% from this very dangerous natural phenomenon! BUT - there are many things that you can do to "tip the odds in your favor" - and / or bring those odds down so low, that not a book maker in the country would take them ;-)

The basics? As the National Weather Service puts it - When Thunder Roars - Go Indoors!

Of course, there is a lot more to it than just that - but, I really couldn't do a better job than the NWS - so you should really visit their site to learn more by clicking here.

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