Fire officials are warning residents not to burn trash or leaves outdoors after firefighters spent about 12 hours over the weekend trying to extinguish a brush fire spanning 5 acres near Antire and Jim Weber roads in High Ridge. The fire burned undetected for some time until High Ridge firefighters spotted the smoke at about 4 p.m. Dec. 8., said Tom Lakin, chief for the High Ridge Fire Protection District.
“They saw the column of smoke from our House 2 in Murphy, about 12-15 miles away,” Lakin said. “They went looking for it, and drove around for about 20 minutes trying to find it.”
The fire was found off Antire Road. Fortunately, Ameren has a road cut through the property where large electrical towers are located, and firefighters were able to get trucks up to the burning brush, Lakin said.
He said firefighters focused their attention near the Dog House, a grooming and training business at 6701 Antire Road, which was the only developed property in the heavily wooded area.
Lakin said the fire was about 200 yards from the business.
“We used air rakes and hand rakes to make a fire line,” he said.
A fire line removes leaves, brush, trees and other fuel for the fire in order to keep it from spreading. The size of the area that was burning made it difficult to get water to the fire, Lakin said.
Firefighters, however, used a small line (hose) stretched along the tree line in order to get some water on the fire, he said.
Lakin said the fire must have been burning for some time.
“There were big trees that were burned and falling,” he said.
Firefighters put the fire out and went back into service, only to have the fire reignite about midnight. Somebody spotted the second fire and reported it, Lakin said.
The fire was easier to see at night, he added.
About 30 firefighters returned to battle the fire, working throughout the night, Lakin said.
“They were there until 3:30 a.m. (Saturday, Dec. 9),” he said.
Lakin said they could not find where the fire originated.
He said no one should be openly burning with the dry, windy conditions we have right now.
“(Fires) spread so fast with the wind and the low humidity. It’s the worst time to have any open burning,” Lakin said.
The Fenton, Eureka, Valley Park and Cedar Hill fire protection districts helped with the call.