The Fall Fire Season continues through the end of November. Improper ash disposal is a common cause of many fires. Wood ashes retain heat for up to several days. The dry and windy fall season provides the perfect conditions for fire from hot ashes.

"As the day progresses and it gets a little warmer, it certainly drops the humidities and it becomes a little bit more of a danger," explains Terry Lasher, Assistant Region 3 Forester.

According to the Department of Forestry in Virginia, a lot of people put their wood stove and chimney ashes in garbage containers that are often lined with plastic bags. It doesn't take much heat to ignite these materials.

Forester Gerald Crowell explains what to do and not to do, "The best thing to do with your hot ashes is to simply spread them out instead of concentrating them in a card-board box or bucket. Spread them out into a bare dirt area, a plowed garden, or their driveway."

An easy way to tell if the ashes are too hot to dispose, is to take the back of your hand and lightly graze the top of the ashes because it is a good indicator of its temperature.

There have also been cases of putting ashes in card-board boxes or bags.

"A few years ago we had an event here in Frederick County where the resident set ashes in a card-board box and set it on their deck, says Forest Technician John Hisghman, "It set their wooden deck on fire and ignited the vinyl siding on their home."

The best thing to do is throw hot ashes into a metal container, douse it with water, put them outside, and leave the lid on the container for several days.