Forestry Division Taking Proactive Approach to Fires

By Carl Mario Nudi, The Bradenton Herald, Fla.

May 16–MANATEE — Firefighters watching for lightning strikes from the air and attacking wildfires when they start are credited with saving Southwest Florida counties from the devastation that’s continuing in other parts of Florida

“We have an airplane flying the whole district,” Division of Forestry spokesman Patrick Mahoney said Tuesday.

In Manatee, DeSoto, Hardee, Sarasota and Charlotte counties, when the pilot spots a small fire, a team is sent right away to suppress it, said Mahoney.

“Last Monday, we had two fires caused by lightning strikes, one in Sarasota, the other in Charlotte,” he said. “No one knew they were there until 100 acres were burned.”

The dry conditions are fueling fires.

Authorities evacuated hundreds of homes after a massive wildfire along the Georgia-Florida border jumped a containment line overnight, authorities said Tuesday.

Annaleasa Winter, a spokeswoman for the Florida Division of Forestry, said that while fire activity was up Tuesday, most of it was far away from containment lines.

Harvey Campbell, Baker County spokesman, said 725 homes were evacuated, 418 on the east side of U.S. 441 and 307 west of the highway.

In Manatee and Sarasota counties, it was quiet for firefighters. The Keetch-Byram Drought Index was reported as 587, with 800 the driest condition. Sarasota County held steady at 604 on the index. Manatee’s number was 6 points higher over Monday’s reading.

Paul Close, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Ruskin said drought conditions will probably remain until seasonal rains return.

Today there is only a 40 percent chance of scattered showers, similar to Tuesday’s forecast, Close said.

There should be a nice sea breeze coming off the Gulf of Mexico today, but that could change by Thursday or Friday, with northerly winds possibly blowing smoke through the area from the northern wildfires, according to Close.

Associated Press contributed to this report.

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