MILTON, Mass. — Some people hiking at Blue Hills Reservation in Milton on Thursday said they could smell smoke because of a fire that burned two acres there Sunday afternoon and is still smoldering.
The National Weather Service is urging people in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut to be extra careful because there’s an elevated wildfire risk.
Dave Celino, Chief Fire Warden for the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, said colorful falling leaves add fuel to what can easily become a forest fire with the dry weather.
“We’re seeing higher than average temperatures, low humidities, dry air masses and now as the last couple of days we’re starting to see intermittent wind events, that help increase rates of spread,” said Celino.
He said it isn’t uncommon to have a Fall fire season in Massachusetts.
“If we come out of the Summer season in a drought and then all of the sudden we start to lose our leaf canopy those leaves are dropping onto the ground and adding fuel to the forest floor,” he said.
Betsy Lussier said she hikes at Blue Hills Reservation in Milton almost every day.
“You can smell it you can see the ground kind of charred,” said Lussier, “with the wind you’d be afraid of the tree coming down on you over the fire.”
Celino said it’s up to everyone to do their part to prevent fires until there’s some much-needed rain.
“Any cigarette butts, any spark into these fuels are probably going to cause some sort of ignition the other issue in the fall is people are burning and starting to burn their woodstoves so be very careful with how you dispose of those materials. "
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