Chatham-Kent's first summer of fire permits is going better than expected.
Both agricultural and camp fire permits have been available since April, as part of the Chatham-Kent Fire & Emergency Services' new bylaw that allows more residents to burn safely.
Assistant Fire Chief Bob Davidson says the bylaw, which was first introduced last August, "recognized the desire of our community to have campfires."
Davidson says almost 1600 permits have been sold so far, resulting in safer burns and less calls of complaints to the fire department.
"In 2016, we ran 107 calls to open-air burn complaints. So far this year, we've only ran 93... so we're actually doing better," says Davidson.
The fire chief also reminds residents that even with a fire permit, they still need permission from their landlord or building owner to burn.
-With files from Cheryl Johnstone
