Minnehaha County, SD Fire Regulations: Outdoor Burning (2026)

Ordinance MC34-04, "An Ordinance for the Declaration of a Fire Danger Emergency," gives the County Commission standing authority to shut down open burning whenever weather or other conditions make it unduly hazardous. Section 1 lets the Board, by resolution, declare a "Fire Danger Emergency" whenever conditions make open burning of any substance unduly hazardous and a danger to public safety. Section 2 then triggers the ban itself: once a Fire Danger Emergency is declared, "all open burning of any substance shall be prohibited within any or all of the unincorporated area of Minnehaha County" and stays prohibited until the Board rescinds the declaration by a separate resolution.

The ban is countywide by default but the Board can tailor it to "any or all" of the unincorporated area, meaning a declaration can be geographically limited. Section 3 defines "open burning" broadly as the intentional burning of any substance, natural or manmade, or the intentional casting off of any burning substance, which sweeps in brush piles, debris burning, and similar activity once a declaration is in force. The ordinance applies only outside incorporated cities; Sioux Falls, Brandon, and Dell Rapids enforce their own fire codes within city limits.

Because the ban is switched on and off by Commission resolution rather than printed calendar dates, residents must check the current status of any declaration with the county before burning, since the underlying ordinance itself does not lapse.