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| 5/26/2009 8:53:00 AM | Email this article • Print this article | Brush, grass fires scorch land in Vilas, Oneida, Iron Counties
High winds, warm temperatures and dry conditions were factors in the outbreak of more than a dozen brush and grass fires in Oneida, Vilas and Iron counties Wednesday.
According to Phil Tyler, the DNR's Headwaters Area forestry leader, firefighters responded to 17 reports of brush or grass fires burning about 45 acres in Vilas County Wednesday.
Authorities reported virtually all of the fires were caused by vegetation or fallen trees coming in contact with power lines due to the extremely high winds.
"The worst of the fires burned about 20 acres in the Rhinelander area just east of Hwy. 10," Tyler said. "Another one on state forestry land burned about 10 acres east of Big Arbor Vitae Lake."
Tyler said his department had prepared ahead of time for just such an outbreak due to weather conditions and had scheduled staff and equipment with the windy, dry forecast in mind.
Oneida County Emergency Management director Ken Kortenhof reported firefighters in that county battled four fires with mutual aid from numerous surrounding fire departments.
Brush or grass fires in Oneida County were reported in the town of Pelican along North Pelican Lake Road, the town of Pine Lake near Spider Lake Road, the town of Minocqua along Squaw Lake Road and in the town of Stella along Spafford Road.
Iron County firefighters were also kept busy Wednesday night as high winds caused at least five fires throughout that county.
The largest one flared up about 5 p.m. along South Island Lake Road in the town of Oma. About 38 acres were burned in that fire alone. Other fire reports were scattered throughout the county. In Iron County there were also reports of many trees downed by the high winds that were either laying on or near the road shoulder of Hwy. 51.
Both Oneida and Iron counties reported that firefighters in their respective counties each fought one structure fire while the brush and grass fires were burning elsewhere.
In Oneida County, a garage fire occurred in the town of Crescent in the area of Emma Lake.
In Oneida County, a barn, owned by the Rowe family along Hwy. 169 in Gurney, was also damaged by a fire.
Authorities in both counties were unable to provide an estimate on how extensive the damage was to the two buildings. They were also unable to announce whether or not the fires were caused by the extreme weather conditions or by unrelated means.
Authorities reported that power outages, caused by trees and branches falling over power lines, affected dozens of homes in Oneida and surrounding counties.
According to Leah VanZile, Minocqua area community relations manager for Wisconsin Public Service, about 2,000 customers in the Lakeland area were without power for various periods of time Wednesday and Wednesday night. She said WPS had sent line crews to this area from other locations to assist in getting power restored.
According to information provided by the National Weather Service's Green Bay office, wind gusts peaked in Rhinelander at about 3 p.m. Wednesday at 45 miles-per-hour. In Minocqua, wind gusts peaked at 39 miles-per-hour at about 4:30 p.m. In Eagle River, wind gusts peaked at 35 miles-per-hour at 1 p.m.
The National Weather Service could provide no such information for any location in Iron County.
To obtain up-to-date information about burning permits, the DNR instructs the public to log onto the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources website at www.dnr.state.wi.us, then click click on "seasonal" and then "Fire Danger."
Joe VanDeLaarschot can be reached at jvandelaarschot@lakelandtimes.com.
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