Cooler autumn weather, and perhaps even a little rain, is on the way as the weekend nears. But in the meantime, an ongoing fire alert issued by the Alabama Forestry Commission late last month remains in effect not only for Limestone County, but for the entire state.

Since Sept. 22, the AFC’s fire alert declaration has prohibited the statewide burning of fields, grasslands, or woodlands without first obtaining a burn permit, with violations subject to prosecution as Class B misdemeanors.

Those restrictions don’t apply to the backyard burning of brush piles and other small fires on private property in unincorporated Limestone County, though Michael Downs, an AFC Forestry specialist supervisor, said it’s still probably a good idea to refrain from burning anything outdoors until the area receives some additional rainfall.

“As of right now, it does not apply to a small fire like that,” said Downs. “But even though those aren’t restricted at this time, we’re not in the middle of ideal conditions for any kind of outdoor fire. It’s not prohibited, in other words, but I would strongly discourage it.”

As of Oct. 4, the U.S. Drought Monitor identified Limestone County — as well as most of north and west Alabama — as experiencing “Abnormally Dry” drought conditions, placing the area in the lowest category in its five-stepped assessment system for drought. A small portion of extreme northeast Alabama, mostly in Jackson and DeKalb counties, is currently in the next most-severe drought category, along with a larger swath of south Alabama, where drought conditions are even more pronounced.

Though some wet-weather relief may be in sight, it’s still slight: The Huntsville office of the National Weather Service forecasts a low-to-medium chance for rainfall to visit the area as a cold front sweeps in with cooler and more seasonable fall temperatures. That means daytime highs that don’t climb out of the high 60-degree range on Saturday and Sunday, with evening temperatures that dip — for the first time this autumn — into the low 40s.