An off-season brush fire burned a quarter of an acre in the Fargher Lake area Saturday, leaving fire crews on alert given record dry weather in the region.
Crews from Clark County Fire District 10 responded to the blaze at 2:40 p.m. after a witness reported seeing a cigarette thrown from a vehicle stopped at the intersection of Northeast 167th Avenue and 379th Street, according to a news release.
February brush fires are rare, according to the release from Battalion Chief Gordon Brooks.
The crews extinguished the fire quickly, Brooks said, but if winds had been worse, 20 to 50 nearby homes could have been threatened.
“With a little push, it would have raced through the fine flashy fuels,” Brooks said. “I hope this isn’t what our summer is going to be like.”
The witness was unable to see the vehicle’s license plate, so officials cannot pursue further action, according to the release. Normally, a citation for throwing burning materials from a vehicle carries a $1,110 fine.
