Upon arrival fire and smoke was observed in the woods east of the RR Tracks. Crews relocated to Hwy 27 to access the location and discovered two large piles of trees burning in the woods.
There was no water supply onsite and two contract workers at the location were unable to advise how the fire was started. Crews conducted shuttle operations and utilized a master stream device to extinguish the perimeter and began suppressing the piles of burning trees. Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry was notified and they responded with two dozers to construct containment lines around the debris piles.
Crews flowed approx. 10,000 gallons of water on these piles; however, the piles are still smoldering and may create smoke in the area north of DeQuincy.
Reminder, the burn ban is still in place in Calcasieu Parish. Red flag warnings exist today and will return tomorrow. While people may think we received rain yesterday, most of the district received less than 1/10 of an inch of rain. Dozers constructing containment lines today were creating dust clouds. Strong north winds and low humidity has dried the fuels significantly and the danger of wildfires occurring is significant. |