Residents neighboring the woods behind the McKinley Mall reported seeing smoke in the area Mother's Day afternoon, reminding firefighters of a difficult brush fire in that same location two years ago.

Arriving on scene and locating the fire was 2nd Assistant Chief Brian Evaldi, who tracked his way through the thickly wooded area to the source of the smoke.  It appeared that youths, having partied in the woods with a camp fire the previous night, had allowed burning embers to remain unextinguished.  The result was a fire which spread in an ever-expanding ring through dry leaves and downed trees, eventually reaching a diameter of approximately fifty yards.

Crews from Newton Abbott, Big Tree, and Windom worked to fight the fire with brushes, shovels, hooks, and portable water cans.  The Village of Hamburg Fire Department's STAR Team arrived with ATVs equipped with pumps, hose, and foam-treated water, extinguishing remaining "hot spots" in smouldering trees and stumps.  Finally, some rain arrived on scene to ensure that the job was finished. 

The Blasdell Village Fire Department was on scene for EMS standby in the event that a firefighter suffered injury or heat-related illness, and Newton Abbott's Squad 10 organization provided cool liquids for rehabilitation of those who fought the smoky fire.