Not to get all Smokey the Bear on you, but … only you can prevent wildfires.

On Wednesday, a Suffolk police officer used a fire extinguisher to put out a fire in the shrubbery and mulch in front of the Morgan Memorial Library. A few hours later, Suffolk Fire and Rescue was called to extinguish a brush fire in the 300 block of Bidwell Street, near Dill and County streets. A grassy area less than a half-acre in size, as well as a power pole, were affected.

It’s probably safe to say these fires weren’t started by lightning strikes or lava, which means they were started by some human action.

Incidentally, at about the same time the fire at the library was discovered, the Virginia Department of Forestry was firing off a press release about escalated fire weather conditions Wednesday and Thursday. Strong, dry winds, above-normal temperatures and low relative humidity provided the perfect climate for wildfires to start and spread quickly, they said.

Our neighbor to the south, North Carolina, is fighting a fire in the Nags Head Woods Preserve that has grown to 240 acres as of Thursday evening.

A strong chance of rain is predicted for Friday, but this scenario will repeat itself throughout the spring. There’s a good reason for the forestry department’s 4 p.m. burn law, which goes into effect in mid-February and lasts through the end of April each year.

Under the law, open burning with a permit is allowed from 4 p.m. to midnight only. The law applies to recreational fires as well as all other types. It is applicable if the fire is in, or within 300 feet of, woodland, brushland or fields containing dry grass or other flammable materials.

Any fire, no matter its size or purpose, can be the spark that ignites a dangerous and destructive wildfire. It could be that you’re burning trash, the fire escapes your control, and the woods near your home are suddenly on fire. It could be that you carelessly discard your cigarette into some mulch near a building and generate some smoke.

Whatever the case, it doesn’t have to happen. Yes, wildfire is a natural part of the ecosystem, but that is why professional wildland firefighters set controlled burns in these days of many millions of people who can be affected by the smoke and flames. Discarded cigarettes, sparks from burning trash and other manmade causes of wildfire are not natural parts of the ecosystem, and everyone — that means you, as Smokey would say — should take care to prevent them from causing a fire.