Firefighters warn of high fire danger as area experiences numerous brush fires
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — Fire crews in and around Oklahoma City had their hands full Friday as dry, windy weather helped quickly spread numerous grass fires.
McIntyre Law Chopper 4 flew over one of the fires as it consumed a large pasture at Waterloo Road and Kelley Avenue, north of Edmond Friday afternoon.
The fire quickly consumed several acres of land and burned many hay bales.
Farmers scrambled to move many hay bales away from the fire line as wind spread the fire closer.
Firefighters from the Edmond Fire Department, Oklahoma City Fire Department and multiple volunteer departments responded.
“We sent for brush pumpers their way to assist them,” said Scott Douglas with the Oklahoma City Fire Department.
Douglas said local fire departments have been overwhelmed with grass fire calls all week.
“We have been busy with grass fires,” Douglas said. “It’s no surprise with the drought like conditions we're experiencing across Oklahoma City.”
He said it takes more than just dry, windy conditions to start a fire. It takes a spark. It takes people.
“We've seen some welders, some people working construction equipment, people outdoor grilling. We see burn piles,” he said. “We just caution anybody that has a burn pile right now, you have to have an approved city permit before you light that on fire and you have to have an approved burn day, which we will not be setting any approved burn days here in the near future.”
Even parking your car in the wrong place can be a problem.
In February, McIntyre Law Chopper 4 captured the moments when two Oklahoma City police cruisers idled in tall grass following a high speed chase, lighting the grass on fire and engulfing the cruisers in flames.
“Your cars really, really hot and that muffler sits right on the bottom,” Douglas said. “So if you're driving over some tall grass and you sit there even just for a couple of moments, that's enough to get a wildland fire started.”
He says, whether it’s tossing a cigarette out your car window, leaving your grill unattended, or lighting a controlled burn without a permit—Friday’s fire at the farm in Edmond proves that small decisions, can bring much bigger consequences.
“Unfortunately, these farmers lost… that is their livelihood,” Douglas said. “And, you know, somebody's driving down the road. You know, you're not thinking about that. You're not thinking what a little harmless spark can do.”
Firefighters still haven’t determined a cause of the Edmond fire.