Two Illegal Burns Cause Multiple Brush Fires in Hernando County Feb. 15

Hernando County Fire Rescue responded to three brush fires Sunday afternoon, Feb. 15, containing all incidents quickly and reporting no injuries; two of the fires were described as "illegal burns," local agency posts and WTSP/Yahoo coverage said. The department’s social posts summarized the shift as "SAME-DAY BRUSH FIRES | Hernando County Fire Rescue responded to three separate brush fires Sunday afternoon, including two that were "illegal"."

Firefighters first answered a 1-acre blaze off Wren Road in Weeki Wachee sometime after 1 p.m., WTSP reported, saying the flames were caused by an illegal burn. The Florida Forest Service - Withlacoochee Forestry Center assisted at the scene and the brush fire was contained by around 1:30 p.m.; WTSP noted no structures were damaged and there were no injuries reported for that incident.

In Brooksville crews contained a 1/4-acre brush fire in the Grant Street area that left a shed damaged, according to the described accounts in the Original Report and WTSP. The Grant Street fire was "contained and knocked down by around 1:20 p.m.," WTSP reported, and that incident is being investigated by the Florida Forest Service - Withlacoochee Forestry Center; the Original Report likewise listed the Grant Street fire as an "illegal burn."

HCFR also responded to a third afternoon fire on Barrientos Lane in Brooksville that WTSP said started when a tree fell on power lines. Withlacoochee River Electric Cooperative, Inc. responded to secure power, allowing first responders to contain the Barrientos Lane blaze, WTSP reported; the available accounts do not specify injuries or structural damage for that incident.

All three responses came while Hernando County remains under a county-wide burn ban put in place Jan. 8 "until further notice" because of a lack of recent rain and forecasts indicating below-average rainfall, WTSP/Yahoo reported. County officials’ burn ban language published by WTSP and Yahoo states the prohibition covers all outdoor burning, including bonfires, campfires, and burning of vegetation, with an exception for cooking on attended and monitored contained gas or charcoal grills.

WTSP and Yahoo coverage noted that firefighters have extinguished "dozens of brush fires in the area over the last month" during the burn ban period. Florida Forest Service - Withlacoochee Forestry Center is handling investigations into the two incidents attributed to "illegal burns," while Withlacoochee River Electric Cooperative assisted containment at the Barrientos Lane scene, the reports said.