Hampton, VA Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)
Outdoor burning rules in Hampton, VA, 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
- Default rule
- Open burning prohibited citywide
- Permit required for
- Barrel burning, land clearing, pit burning
- Burn-ban authority
- Fire code official can order fire out
- Relight wait
- 24 hours after ordered out
- Penalty
- Class 1 misdemeanor
Summary
Hampton bans open burning citywide by default: bonfires, barrel burning, land clearing and waste burning are all prohibited unless the fire code official issues a permit or the burning falls under a listed exception.
Except as otherwise provided in this section, open burning is prohibited. Salvage, demolition operations, or disposal of waste materials by burning is prohibited. ... The fire code official may prohibit open burning, otherwise lawful, when smoke may cause reduced visibility on any highway; or when open burning may constitute a hazard to life, health, or property.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 31 | Zoning: Supplement 20).
Full Breakdown
Hampton's local amendment to the Virginia Statewide Fire Prevention Code prohibits open burning throughout the city as the default rule; salvage, demolition debris and waste-material burning are barred outright. Permits from the fire code official can authorize barrel burning, land-clearing pit burning, and silvicultural or wildlife-management burning, each subject to Department of Environmental Quality air-division conditions. Even otherwise-lawful burning can be shut down: the fire code official may prohibit or order any open fire extinguished when smoke reduces highway visibility or threatens life, health or property, and a doused fire cannot be relit for 24 hours.
Violations & Fines
Open burning without a required permit, or defying a fire code official's order to extinguish a fire, is a Class 1 misdemeanor under § 14-11(f): up to $2,500 and 12 months in jail.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I burn yard waste or brush in Hampton?
Can Hampton stop a fire that started out legal?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Hampton
How Hampton compares: Cities with the Strictest Outdoor Burning Rules·Compare Hampton to another location·View the Virginia fire regulations overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.