Georgetown County, SC Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)
Outdoor burning rules in Georgetown County, SC, also called the burn ban, open burning, or fire restriction ordinance, set when you can burn yard waste, debris, or run a recreational fire.
Key Facts
- Structure setback
- 50 ft from any structure
- Small-pile exception
- 25 ft if 3 ft diam/2 ft high or less
- Required call
- SC Forestry Commission 1-800-986-5256
- Required call
- County Dispatch 843-527-6763
- Attendant
- age 18+, present until fire is out
- Penalty
- up to $500 fine or 30 days jail
- Agricultural burns
- 3+ acre parcel, 500-ft setback
Summary
Unincorporated Georgetown County bans open burning within 50 feet of any structure and prohibits burning rubbish, tires, treated wood, plastics and construction debris anywhere in the county. Permitted yard-debris burns require notifying the state Forestry Commission and county dispatch, and violations carry fines up to $500 plus 30 days in jail.
Sec. 10-42. - Prohibition. It shall be a violation of this article for any person to kindle or maintain any open burning or authorize any such fire to be kindled or maintained within fifty (50) feet of any structure, and provisions shall be made to prevent the fire from spreading within fifty (50) feet of any structure, as that term is defined in the current adopted edition of the International Fire Code, and consistent with those codes and standards. (1)Exception. The minimum required distance from a structure shall be twenty-five (25) feet where the pile size is three (3) feet or less in diameter, and two (2) feet or less in height.
Full Breakdown
Article II of Chapter 10, adopted by Ordinance No. 21-22 in 2021, governs open burning across unincorporated Georgetown County to curb air pollution and fire hazards (§ 10-41). Section 10-42 makes it a violation to kindle or maintain any open fire within 50 feet of a structure, with an exception cutting that distance to 25 feet for a pile no larger than 3 feet in diameter and 2 feet high. Section 10-43 bans burning rubbish, food waste, animal carcasses, paint, waste oil, asphalt, treated or painted wood, plastics, rubber and tires, construction materials, animal waste and abandoned structures anywhere in the county, subject to state law.
Section 10-44 allows burning clean wood, leaves, weeds, brush and other yard debris that originated on the property, but the responsible person must first call the South Carolina Forestry Commission at 1-800-986-5256 and the Georgetown County Dispatchers Office at 843-527-6763, keep the fire at least 50 feet from a structure, and have a competent adult at least 18 years old attend it until it is completely out. The Georgetown County Administrator or a fire chief from Georgetown County Fire and EMS, Midway Fire Rescue or Murrells Inlet-Garden City Fire District can prohibit otherwise-authorized burning when conditions are hazardous, and burning is automatically banned countywide during any active red-flag fire alert from the State Forestry Commission (§ 10-45).
The fire code official may order any hazardous open burn extinguished. Agricultural burning is allowed only on parcels of at least 3 acres, set back at least 500 feet from the property line (§ 10-49). Administration and enforcement rest with the county administrator or designee (§ 10-48).
Violations & Fines
A general violation of the open-burning article is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine up to $500 or up to 30 days in jail; where the article instead labels an act an infraction or public nuisance, the fine tops out at $200 with up to 30 hours of public service. Each day a violation continues is a separate offense, and the county may seek an injunction to abate the condition and recover its costs (§ 10-55).
Frequently Asked Questions
How close to my house can I burn yard debris?
Do I need to call anyone before burning leaves and brush?
What can never be burned in Georgetown County?
What happens if I get caught burning illegally?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Georgetown County
How Georgetown County compares: Cities with the Strictest Outdoor Burning Rules·Compare Georgetown County to another location·View the South Carolina fire regulations overview
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