Fire crews scramble as burns flare up to become wildfires

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Fire crews scramble as burns flare up to become wildfires Dry weather and gusty winds kept several Jackson County fire departments running Sunday. Applegate firefighters rolled to four debris burns that escaped control. Central Point firefighters fought two grass fires and were called to several illegal burns. A fire in the 12000 block of Highway 238 near Williams burned more than 2 acres of grass and brush before firefighters from Jackson County Fire District 9 could knock it down. Wind-driven flames in Central Point briefly flared six feet high at a grass fire in the 2100 block of Scenic Avenue. Applegate firefighters also went to out-of-control burns in the 5500 block and 6700 block of Highway 238 and the 5600 block of Sterling Creek Road. Jackson County Fire District 3 firefighters went to a grass fire in the 7200 block of Old Stage Road in addition to the Scenic Avenue fire. Capt. Joe D'Amico of Jackson County Fire District 9 said lots of people apparently wanted to burn yard debris before an approaching storm made the material too wet to burn. They forgot that there has been little measurable rain for weeks. Winds that gusted to 32 mph at the Medford airport quickly pushed the small fires out of control. "People become real complacent this time of year," D'Amico said. "Everybody's impatient to get those piles burned off. Fire season's over. Pretty soon their fire is blowing through the grass and into the blackberries." Medford set a record high temperature for Veterans Day. The mercury climbed to 72 degrees, besting the old record of 71 degrees, set in 1981.   Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.