Brush burning, high winds leads to Bridgewater grass fire

6 years ago

BRIDGEWATER, Maine — After a brush fire on Bootfoot Road led to a grass fire Saturday, the Bridgewater Fire Department is reminding residents to obtain a burn permit before burning. 

Matt Powers, information officer with the Bridgewater Fire Department, said that crews responded to a grass fire on Bootfoot Road Saturday when a controlled brush fire lost control and spread amid gusty winds.

“The homeowner, who failed to obtain a burn permit, lost control of the fire as winds picked up later in the day,” Powers said in a press release.

The resident, who was not named, did not have a burn permit, Powers said.

An eight-person crew using a new side-by-side utility vehicle with a wildfire suppression system quickly extinguished the grass fire, Powers said.

A crew from the Maine Forestry Service also responded to the fire just as it was being put out,  and “dealt with the permit compliance issue with the homeowner,” Powers said.

“The Bridgewater Fire Department wants to remind everyone that burn permits are required for open burns in Maine,” Powers said. Burn permits can be obtained from local fire wardens or their designated officials or online.