Controlled Burn Fills San Angelo Sky With Smoke

SAAN ANGELO, TX— A prescribed burn at the San Angelo State Park has filled city skies with brown smoke. The smoke can be seen from all around town.

But the fire should not give residents reason to worry.

"Did you know that fire can be good for the land," the San Angelo State Park asked in a Facebook post yesterday. "After many years of fire exclusion, an ecosystem that needs periodic fire becomes unhealthy. Trees are stressed by overcrowding; fire-dependent species disappear; and flammable fuels build up and become hazardous."

According to the San Angelo State Park, this controlled burn is meant to help reduce the amount of hazardous fuels and protect human communities from extreme fires, minimize the spread of pest insects and disease and remove unwanted species that threaten the native ecosystem. The burn will also help improve the habitat for for threatened and endangered species, provide forage for game, recycle nutrients and promotes the growth of trees, wildflowers and other plants, the park says.