The Department of Natural Resources will conduct a controlled burn today at Hoosier Prairie Nature Preserve.

Smoke from the controlled burning can create a visual hazard for motorists. As a result, local officials will close Main Street, between Wiggs Street in Griffith and Kennedy Avenue, during the burn, as done in previous years. Hours of closure are expected to be 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. local time. 

Because a different portion of the area will be burned this year, traffic restrictions also will likely affect Kennedy Avenue, which may be closed or be under lane restrictions for short periods of time during the procedure.

Hoosier Prairie is a large tract maintained by the DNR Division of Nature Preserves. It contains prairie, oak savanna and marsh habitats on both sides of Main Street in Griffith, Schereville and Highland.

The DNR conducts the burning each spring and fall in order to preserve the area's rare prairie/savanna habitat, which requires sunny, open conditions. Without the fires, trees and plants more common to other areas eventually would crowd out and eliminate rare prairie and savanna plants and habitat.

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