Fire News

City of Fort Worth lifts ban on burning due to drought conditions

Do not do this. This is a no.

Photo courtesy of Houston Audubon

UPDATE 10-20-2021: The ban on outdoor burning has been lifted. That said, the Tarrant County Fire Marshal's Office reminds residents to observe the following requirements:

Burn only in the unincorporated areas of Tarrant County.
Contact the Tarrant County Fire Alarm Center at 817-232-9800 on the day you plan to burn to register your address and to confirm it is an allowable burn day. The Fire Alarm Center is open 24 hours a day.
The party responsible outdoor burning must be present and remains liable for damages.
Begin burning no earlier than one hour after sunrise and end the same day no later than one hour before sunset. No outdoor burning at night is allowed.
Make sure the smoke does not blow towards a neighbor’s house or towards a road.
The burn must be downwind and at least 300 feet from structures on adjacent properties.
Only brush, tree limbs, grass clippings, or leaves. The material must originate on the property where the burning is taking place. No hauling outside items like construction material, heavy oils, or chemical waste.
If wind speeds are greater than 23 mph, no burning is permitted.

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Outdoor burning is officially banned in Tarrant County, as of September 28.

According to a release, the Tarrant County Commissioner's Court approved an Outdoor Burning Ban for Tarrant County, and that means all outdoor burning. The ban will be in place for the next 90 days.

The release says that Texas Forest Service has determined that the unincorporated areas of Tarrant County are under drought conditions. The most recent drought map, drawn on September 21, shows continued expansion and intensification of drought across the state.

The website drought.gov shows a large patch in the southwest corner of Tarrant County, extending into Parker County to the west and Johnson County to the south, as being "abnormally dry."

These conditions are what prompted the Tarrant County Fire Marshal to request the ban.

Surprisingly, you are still allowed to cook outdoors because god forbid anything stand in the way of you and your grilled vittles. The fire marshall website lays down the rules; click the Outdoor Burning icon. It says that gas grills are the safest option, and recommends you keep the flames covered during the operation of your gas grill.

If you simply must use a charcoal- or wood-burning grill or a smoker, these must be placed on a concrete, gravel or dirt surface at least five feet from combustible materials, and you should keep the cover on the grill during use.

For residents in rural areas, they suggest keeping an area of approximately 30 feet mowed around your home, to create a fire wall.

They don't say if they're enforcing it, but a violation is a class C Misdemeanor and with a fine of up to $500.

festivals

income news

This is how much it takes to be a middle class earner in DFW in 2025

Photo by Michael Tuszynski on Unsplash

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Maintaining a middle class status in Dallas-Fort Worth only gets harder as the years go on, and the income ceiling to even be labeled as such has just risen even higher. So says SmartAsset's annual "What It Takes to Be Middle Class in America" report for 2025.

According to the latest findings, middle-class income in big cities has a wide range: Depending on where the city is located, it it can be as low as $49,478 or as high as $71,359. This is up from 2024, when middle-class incomes started at $47,568.

Among Texas cities, Plano holds the No. 1 spot on the list with the highest middle-class income ranges.

A household in Plano would need to make a minimum of $72,389 but no more than $217,188 to be considered "middle class" in 2025. Last year, the necessary salary range to maintain a middle class designation in Plano was between $63,651 and $190,004 a year.

The report used a variation of Pew Research's definition of a middle class household, stating the salary range is "two-thirds to double the median U.S. salary." To determine income limits, the report analyzed data from the Census Bureau's 2023 one-year American Community Survey, where the most recent data was available.

New to the 2025 edition, SmartAsset also determined the middle class income thresholds for all 50 states.

Arlington, Virginia has the highest middle class income range in the country, with households needing to make between $93,470 and $280,438 a year to be labeled "middle class."

Middle class earners across Dallas-Fort Worth
Fort Worth households will also have a hard time maintaining a "middle class" designation, as the city climbed from No. 184 last year to No. 46 this year. Earners would have to make between $51,383 and $154,164 annually to be considered middle class in 2025. Last year, they would have needed to make between $47,680 and $143,054 a year.

In a shift from the 2024 report, SmartAsset decided to analyze only the top 100 most populous U.S. cities, after previously ranking 345 cities. That means DFW suburbs like Allen and McKinney – which were among the top 40 cities with the highest middle class income threshold nationwide in 2024 – were left out of this year's analysis.

Here’s what it takes to be middle class in other DFW cities:

No. 43 – Irving: $52,885 to $158,670 yearly
No. 55 – Garland: $47,815 to $143,458 yearly
No. 59 – Dallas: $46,743 to $140,242 yearly
No. 61 – Arlington: $46,134 to $138,416 yearly

Elsewhere in Texas
On the opposite end of the scale, middle class earners in Lubbock have one of the smallest income ranges necessary to be labeled middle class in Texas: Between $36,297 and $108,902 a year. The city ranked 92nd nationwide.

The study says cost of living changes, rising inflation rates, and shifting wages nationwide have made it more difficult for Americans to maintain their "middle class" status.

"For middle-class Americans, the dream has long been a life of reasonable comfort — a stable home, the ability to save enough money to retire, and enough left over for periodic splurges like family vacations, updated cars, or home improvements," the report's author wrote. "But with living costs surging over the past few years, that dream is getting pricier."

Here’s what it takes to be a middle class earner in other Texas cities:

No. 18 – Austin: $60,995 to $183,002 yearly
No. 73 – Corpus Christi: $43,421 to $130,276 yearly
No. 75 – Houston: $41,754 to $125,274 yearly
No. 78 – San Antonio: $41,544 to $124,644 yearly
No. 82 – Laredo: $40,476 to $121,440 yearly
No. 86 – El Paso: $38,208 to $114,634 yearly

In SmartAsset's state-by-state analysis, Texas has the 23rd largest middle class income range. Texas households would need to make between $50,515 and $151,560 to be labeled "middle class" this year. The median income for a Texas household in 2023 came out to $75,780.

The No. 1 state with the highest income range required is Massachusetts, with middle class households needing to make between $66,565 and $199,716 yearly in 2025.

income middle class status reports smartasset dallas plano fort worth