KASKA — A 2.3-acre brush fire in Blythe Township on Sunday may have been started intentionally, according to a fire official.
“I think somebody started it in the pit,” Blythe Township Fire Chief Brian McMullin said about 5:45 p.m., referring to an illegal dumping pit.
A large plume of smoke was visible about 3:15 p.m. from the Wal-Mart Supercenter parking lot in Saint Clair. On scene, firefighters continued to dump water on the area shortly before 6 p.m. Sunday.
McMullin said he didn’t investigate what occurred, but he said when firefighters arrived on scene, there was thick, black smoke in the area of the pit.
“It was really, really burning,” he said.
McMullin said he was told that two quad riders called in the fire about 3:15 p.m. Sunday.
Bob Kurilla, assistant district forester with the Weiser Forest District, which is District 18 and encompasses seven counties including Schuylkill, said the fire was contained at 5:12 p.m.
Kurilla and Steven Ziegler, a fire forester with the Weiser Forest District, said the fire is still under investigation. McMullin didn’t have any further information on the cause of the fire Sunday.
Ziegler said no firefighters were injured.
“That’s the one thing we always worry about, that everyone gets home,” he said.
Ziegler estimated about 40 firefighters and employees from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources responded to the scene. Responding fire companies came from New Philadelphia, Tuscarora, Middleport, Kaska, Saint Clair and Llewellyn.
In addition to the fire in Blythe Township, firefighters responded to a brush fire on Peach Mountain, Norwegian Township.
Ziegler said he didn’t know the cause of that fire but said it was about an acre before it was contained.
Ziegler said it is a busy time for firefighters with the dry conditions. He said firefighters have been called out about two or three times a day for brush fires.
A burn ban went into effect Friday in Schuylkill County. It will run until May 22 unless the Schuylkill County commissioners decide to extend the ban. A burn ban prohibits any outdoor burning such as garbage, leaves, paper, grass, twigs, litter, paper and wood in burn barrels, other containers or on the ground. Grilling food on charcoal or gas grills for eating is permitted, and businesses can apply for an exemption. Violators can face a fine of $100 for the first offense, $200 for the second and $300 for each subsequent violation. They are also responsible for the cost involved to fight those fires.
“It’s very dry and they should not have any fires anywhere,” Kurilla said.