Breakheart Reservation closed until further notice due to brush fire
SAUGUS -- Despite recent rain, the fire at Breakheart Reservation in Saugus is still burning Tuesday night. DCR officials said the park will remain closed until further notice.
It's extremely late in the year to see brush fires. This month alone, there have been 100 of them in Massachusetts. In the past week, crews statewide have tackled more than three dozen brush fires.
More than 240 acres have burned -- most of that in Breakheart.
The typical fire season is in the spring when the snow-pack melts.
The biggest challenge now is the fires that have burned into the ground.
"Our soils are made up of organic material when we leave rain out of the formula, ultimately all of those fuels, decayed material, root systems, decayed logs become available to burn under the ground," explained DCR Chief Fire Warden Dave Celino. "Any of these fires that have any length of time to burn are now going to become a challenging extended operation for all the fire services that are involved."
DCR is banning all open flame fires and charcoal grills on its properties.
It said the state needs to see three to four days of steady rain to make a major impact in the drought and lower the fire risk.