Archives > News Update
Print
E-mail
Comment
Rate
RSS
Share
McKinney: Brush fire burns 30 acres in northeastern Collin County
The Collin County Fire Marshal’s Office said extinguished debris and high winds fed the flames Sunday.
By Danny Gallagher, McKinney Courier-Gazette
A stump that wasn’t fully extinguished and heavy Sunday winds made for a fiery combination.
The fire started sometime before 2:15 p.m. Sunday in a field near the 8500 block of Morgan Road, according to dispatch reports.
Collin County Fire Marshal Steve Deffibaugh said a nearby resident was legally burning some debris on Saturday and a stump that wasn’t fully extinguished burned up again when the winds picked up on Sunday. The flames eventually spread to some nearby grass and spread as the 24 mph winds fanned the flames.
Fire crews from Melissa, Princeton, Westminster, Josephine, Farmersville and the Collin County Fire Marshal’s Office responded to the call. The Texas Forest Service also brought bullsozers to the scene to help smother some of the smoldering debris, Deffibaugh said.
Fire crews were able to keep the flames from destroying two nearby homes and four other buildings in the immediate area in less than three hours, Deffibaugh said.
“We were under the red flag warning today and I do not doubt we will be put under red flag warnings for the next couple days because we are expecting high winds and low humidity,” Deffibaugh said.
Deffibaugh said the winter months present a high risk of grass fires because of heavy and large, dry vegetation.
“We really don’t know what to expect,” Deffibaugh said, “but we do anticipate it whenever we have high winds and low humidity. We do anticipate or plan for it when there is grass that’s higher than normal.”
Deffibaugh said residents should avoid outdoor activities and chores that involve the risk of hire damage such as welding and burning debris even if they have a legal permit to burn outdoors. They should also keep firewood stacked in areas away from their home to reduce the risk of spreading the fire to their residences and keep gutters clean of any flammable debris.
“They’ll dry out and then an ember comes along and it will start a fire,” Deffibaugh said.
Contact Danny Gallagher at dgallagher@acnpapers.com.
The following are comments from the readers.
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
You must register with a valid email to post comments.
Only your Member ID will be posted with the comments.
Only your Member ID will be posted with the comments.
Registered users sign in here:
Become a Registered User
- Return to: News Update «
- Home «
- Top of Page ^
