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News-Sun photo by CHRISTOPHER TUFFLEY Flames still licked the air after a wild fire's main blaze was put out. Volunteer fire fighters and forestry service personnel used brush trucks to get water to the hot spots.

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published: Thursday, January 26, 2012

Wildfire contained in Leisure Lakes

by CHRISTOPHER TUFFLEY

christopher.tuffley@newssun.com

LEISURE LAKES -- Leisure Lakes and Lake Placid volunteer fire departments joined Division of Forestry firefighters in containing a potentially dangerous wild fire Thursday afternoon. A Forestry spotter plane and water-bearing helicopter helped in the effort.

The initial fire, and a small breakout, covered 15 acres south of Northern Boulevard, about a mile east of Henscratch Road.

While it is too early to determine what caused the fire, Melissa Yunis, information officer for the Forestry service, said current weather and terrain conditions contributed to the rapid spread.

When the frost killed the grasses they became ideal tinder. With the drought, trees are vulnerable.

"Fire wants to live," Yunis said. "It throws and spits fire brands ahead of the fire line. Flame length is typically twice as high as the size of the plants, and the flames climb into the trees. Firebrands can travel a quarter mile with the wind."

Firebrands, she explained are burning twigs or leaves.

One home in the course of the afternoon was at risk, but not threatened.

Yunis said fire needs three ingredients: oxygen, heat and fuel. In a forest fire, the quickest way to contain a fire line is to remove fuel. In a house fire the quickest way to contain the flames is by using water to remove the heat. The different fire teams used both methods Thursday.

First a bulldozer with a plow attachment cut a swath of vegetation down to the soil. Its blade was used to create a flat surface that fire engines and brush trucks used as a road. They delivered water to cool hot spots and put out flames.

With established roads used as main fire breaks, the dozers pinch off the fire lines in between.

The helicopter delivers 320 gallons of water per load, which helps knock down the flames at the fire's head.

Yunis warns the danger of wildfires is high this winter.

"Homeowners have to take action," she said. "Make sure your home is 30 feet away from wooded areas. Clear all dead vegetation, including on the roof and in gutters."

Lean, clean and green are the watch words she said.

Yunis praised the quick response of local fire departments and the Forestry service for containing the fire before any homes or people were threatened.

"The volunteer firefighters are the unsung heroes," she said, adding that the helicopter took only five minutes to arrive from Okeechobee.