# Fire and the wildfire season

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Decree 245/025 bans open-air fires and burning nationwide **from 1 November to 30 April** every year. SINAE, the national emergency system, can extend the period. [Decree 245/025 on IMPO](https://www.impo.com.uy/bases/decretos/245-2025)

## Fire calendar

- Outdoor fires banned: November, December, January, February, March, April.
- No national ban (local rules still apply): May, June, July, August, September, October.

## The three exceptions

- **Grills**: Cooking food on a grill (parrillero).
- **Designated places**: In the places set aside for it at organised campsites, holiday camps and clubs.
- **Fire pit on private land**: At ground level, in a cleared circle of 5 m or more, surrounded by stones, sand or soil.

## Safe fire pit

The 5 m figure comes from the decree. The rest is good practice.

1. **Cleared circle**: 5 m or more with no dry grass, branches or leaves.
2. **Edge**: Stones, sand or soil around the fire.
3. **Watch it**: Never leave the fire alone; keep water at hand.
4. **Put it out**: Water, stir the embers and wet them again until no heat is left.

## Penalties

Decree 245/025 sets no fines of its own: it refers to other rules.

- **Penal Code, art. 206**: A fire that endangers people or other people’s property. 12 months to 16 years in prison. https://www.impo.com.uy/bases/codigo-penal/9155-1933/206
- **Law 15.896, art. 2**: Fire policing regulations. 10 to 200 UR. https://www.impo.com.uy/bases/leyes/15896-1987/2
- **Decree 584/990, art. 6**: A fire pit that breaks the conditions, in the coastal strip of 6 departments. 10 to 100 UR. https://www.impo.com.uy/bases/decretos/584-1990
- **Law 20.238**: Forest fire prevention. 100 to 5,000 UR. https://www.impo.com.uy/bases/leyes/20238-2023
- **Decree 52/005**: Lighting a fire at a non-designated site in a protected area. 10 to 1,000 UR. https://www.impo.com.uy/bases/decretos/52-2005

## Today’s fire risk

INUMET, the national weather service, publishes the Forest Fire Risk Index (IRIF). Check it before you go, also outside the season. This site does not show the index live. [Go to INUMET](https://www.inumet.gub.uy/)

## Frequent questions

### Can I use a gas stove during the season?

The rule does not say. The decree speaks of “open-air fires and burning” and does not mention stoves. Ask at the campsite or the fire brigade.

### And outside the season?

The national ban does not apply, but each campsite’s and protected area’s rules, the fire pit conditions of Decree 584/990 on the coastal strip and the crime of arson still do.

### Can I light a fire on the beach?

In Montevideo it is banned on the beaches; in Canelones it is a serious offence and in San José a 1947 decree bans it. Elsewhere the departmental rules do not say, and in season the national ban applies.

### I read that it is allowed in urban areas

That exception was in the previous decree (436/007), repealed by Decree 245/025. Some 2025 press articles still mention it.