Wisconsin Decommissioning Fire Outlook Towers

MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Dozens of towers built mainly in the 1930s and 1940s for spotting forest fires in Wisconsin are being taken out of commission.

The Department of Natural Resources says the cost to maintain, repair or replace the 72 towers currently used throughout the state isn't worth it. The DNR says its resources are best spent enhancing aerial detection of forest fires.

Bureau of forest protection director Trent Marty says fire towers were once the primary means of fire detection, but now more than 90 percent of forest fires are reported by citizens.

Decades ago, the DNR had 119 fire lookout towers mostly in northern Wisconsin. The agency staffed 60 towers last year. Marty says the DNR is in the process of notifying landowners about the plan to take the towers out of service.

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