I live in the Ozarks and many of the small cities are in the basins/valleys. Many of those small cities are hot spots for big city people from St Louis and even IL who come here to canoe, kayak and tube down a large Spring fed river. Tons of resorts and campgrounds. Here's the terrain. We manage.
It's not done on overly windy days or during red flag weather. These cities and resorts have been there for decades. We have oak/hickory forests along with pine and cedar. Not exactly fire resistant species. The preferred time is when things are fairly dry and rain is coming. It's just a matter of thinking things through. Since our minds aren't cluttered with DEI, ESG of communist revolution, it's not that hard. For others, the issue is never the issue, there is only the revolution, which leaves no time for common sense.
The whole thing is different out west. Let me clarify, when the Santa Ana's start, it's starts up north/east in the higher deserts and it's pushed down from 5,000+ feet, literally compressing down to the lowest points. Prevailing winds then change from on-shore to off-shore, heading to sea level, ocean.
The Santa Ana's or Devil winds are enough to blow over dozens of tractor traitors below the passes during these events. And these winds have a long history of wrecking havoc. They've driven many a fire. And sometimes their sustained winds can be 40+mph-with guest coming in at 90+mph. Then factor in hot embers raining down from thousands of feet away, blowing so hard you lose all air support.
Timing is everything yep. But climate can change. No pun intended...S**t happens.
Btw, they do controlled burns in S. CA and as you can imagine with mountains, super steep canyons, passes, with brush 10+ feet high, they're very careful. Controlled burns can get out of hand. It's happened many times in the past.