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MISSOULA - Folks may be seeing some extra smoke in the air around Western Montana as open burning season started up earlier this week. One weekend incident served as a reminder that people need to be careful when doing any Springtime burning.

Several Missoula Fire Departments responded Saturday afternoon to the fire on 451 Spanish Peaks Drive where the controlled burn was. A Mansion Heights resident was burning a small pile of debris in his front yard, but fire officials say he was unable to contain the fire once it spread onto the grass.

Authorities with the Missoula City Fire Department told us that they're unsure if the property owner had a proper permit for the controlled burn.

Under Missoula County's Unified Outdoor Burning Permit, burners are required to call the outdoor burning hotline after 9:00 a.m. on the day they wish to burn. Permits are not valid when air quality or fire hazard restrictions are in effect. The outdoor burning hotline number is 258.4900.