A brush fire threatened the residents of Indian Lake Estates in Southeastern Polk County Wednesday afternoon.
- Wildfires a real hazard this time of year
- Little rain and dry air causes concerns
- RELATED: Weather forecast
The smoke plume was very evident on Klystron 9 and Bay News 9 showed it through the afternoon.
The exact cause of the fire is still unknown, however, with very little rain as of late and generally dry air, wildfires are a real hazard.
This is usually a very dry time of year. We don’t usually start to see real rainfall until the summer months. So, as we go through the Spring, wildfires become a big concern.
With a lack of rainfall, dry air, and breezes, the ingredients are present for the spread of wildfires. They can start from something as simple as throwing a lit cigarette out of a car window.
The one main thing we are lacking this year however, is dead vegetation. Some winters go by with quite a few freezes. That would lead to much more dead, very dry brush and plant material which is extra fuel for the fires.
Even just a little bit of moisture in the plants can be enough to prevent rapid spreading of fire. Some may recall back in the late 1990s and early 2000s, during the significant drought, we also had several winter freezes, and in some cases, the ground was smoldering for weeks.
This year, as we get later into February, the chance for a widespread hard freeze diminishes. Hopefully, we can get a weather system to move through every week or so and give us just a little bit of rain to put some moisture in the ground, air, and in the plants.