Conditions good for brush fires Monday, bad for firefighters
WINFIELD TWP — People across Butler County burned some of their trash Monday, March 25, taking advantage of the good weather.
But the conditions also were ripe for wildfires, and two people on opposite ends of Butler County started brush fires Monday afternoon that each burned a few acres of woods.
Kris Bowser, assistant chief of Herman Volunteer Fire Company, said a resident near Sasse Road was burning trash when wind spread the blaze onto nearby brush, which soon caught nearby woods on fire. The adult male doing the burning was evaluated for smoke inhalation by Saxonburg Ambulance at the scene, but was not transported, according to Bowser.
The fire, which started at around 5 p.m., ended up burning about 2 acres and required some additional tools to extinguish.
“We used a (utility task vehicle) to help with suppression,” Bowser said.
Firefighters wrapped up the scene at around 6 p.m., after making sure they extinguished the blazes.
A similar situation unfolded on the other side of Butler County — in Lancaster Township — just a few hours earlier.
Scott Garing, chief of Harmony Fire District, said an individual on Little Creek Road in Lancaster Township was burning boxes when a gust of wind picked up the flame at around 3 p.m., quickly lighting up brush that helped it spread close to Interstate 79. The highway remained open during the fight.
Garing said firefighters’ response required a defense on two fronts.
“It was a wind-driven fire that the interstate stopped,” Garing said. “We actually had units on both sides; we fought the fire from the interstate and the guy’s yard.”
Garing said the fire ended up burning about 2 acres of land, but no one was injured and the fire didn’t damage any property in its wake.
“It was all hillside and thick vegetation,” Garing said.
Firefighters were on the scene for about a 90 minutes, Garing said. He also said the conditions were right for fires, because of dry weather and the continued dormancy of many plant species.
Butler County 911 received several calls about brush fires across the county Monday, in areas including Buffalo, Connoquenessing, Fairview, Middlesex and Parker townships. Last April, Garing said, Harmony Fire District had already responded to about 15 brush fires up to this point.
The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’ Bureau of Forestry is responsible for protecting the state’s 17 million acres of wildlands from damage by wildfire.
The DCNR said March, April and May present the greatest danger of wildfires in Pennsylvania, in addition to the autumn months of October and November. The prevalence of dried grass or leaves and dry conditions, including low relative humidity, leads to increased danger of wildfires around the spring, according to the DCNR.
Jason Frazier, a meteorologist with National Weather Service Pittsburgh, said Monday humidity values were considerably low throughout the day Monday, which led to the increased likelihood of forest fires.
“When it comes to fires, they like it when it's warm and when it's dry. Add in some winds, there are some increased concerns for fires in the area,” Frazier said. “That will change tomorrow. The cold front will bring rain with it.”
The DCNR also said people burning debris is another major cause of forest fires in Pennsylvania. More than half of all wildfire ignitions in Pennsylvania occur within the wildland-urban interface, which is the area where homes and development meet and intermingle with undeveloped forests.
On Monday, Garing put the situation bluntly.
“Now is a terrible time of year because everything is dead,” he said.
