Published: March 27, 2009 11:10 am      

Officials believe field fires were set

Experts continue to urge caution in burning brush

Arson is suspected as the cause of three field fires reported near Clymers Tuesday night.

All three occurred within an hour of each other, starting about 10 p.m., and the blazes damaged about 20 acres of farmland and wooded area.

Clymers Volunteer Fire Chief Gary Michael said one of his volunteer firefighters, who happened to arrive late to the scene, saw a vehicle leave the site of the third fire just seconds before he spotted the flames.

“One of my men was coming north on 500 West,” Michael said. “He saw brake lights and tail lights of a vehicle, but the guy dropped it into gear as soon as he saw the headlights in the distance. It looked like he had stopped to set it, then drove off. My guy was about half to three quarters of a mile behind so he wasn’t close enough to get a description of the vehicle.”

Michael added that the time of the fires and their location also pointed to arson.

“It was late at night and the fires were set in areas where they were not close to homes,” Michael said. “The second one was started before the first was out. With the high winds, someone was definitely out to get someone.”

Michael said Cass County sheriff’s deputies questioned people in the area Tuesday night but identified no suspects. Maj. Mike Day urged anyone with information on the fires to come forward.

Logansport Fire chief Bob McMinn said that it was unlikely fire investigators would be able to prove the cause of the field fires.

“When it is a field fire, it is difficult to take samples because the burn patterns are not the same as inside a building or structure,” McMinn said.

Michael said it was unclear what had been used to start the fires.

He expressed gratitude for the help of Burrows and Georgetown volunteer fire departments the field fires may have been even worse, he said.

“We didn’t get out of there until 1 a.m., but without their help we might still be there now “ Michael said. “Two of the fires got into a wooded area, which caused more trouble for us. The trees were burnt, and we had to walk out there to stomp the fire out.”

Field fires have been common throughout the area in the past few weeks as the weather has improved and residents and farmers have begun to burn trash and dead vegetation that accumulated over the winter.

Mark Kepler, agricultural educator at Purdue University’s Fulton County Extension office, said the extremely dry grass, a lack of precipitation and high winds have created prime conditions for controlled burns to escalate into fast-spreading field fires.

“Two weeks ago, we had the floods, but since then everything has dried up,” Kepler said. “People are out burning trash and brush for beautification purposes, but with the wind the way it is, if you’re not keeping on top of the fire it can get away from you.”

Logansport firefighters have responded to 22 field and trash fires since March 1.

As the calls keep coming in, Capt. Randy Rife is one of numerous firefighters hoping that the recent weather takes a turn for the worse. He said field fires are relatively easy to extinguish, but can get complicated if they reach wooded areas.

“We use tankers and a grass truck,” Rife said. “The grass truck is a four-wheel-drive truck that has 250 gallons of water that can get out through the fields.”

When firefighters can’t use the grass truck, especially in woods, they use field brooms and rubber slappers to extinguish the fire, Rife said. He added that saving buildings was always the primary concern.

“Just like any fire, we try and put it out,” he said. “But if we can’t we try and beat it to the building. Unfortunately that doesn’t always happen.”

Kepler said field fires could cost landowners.

“You don’t want to burn off the field because you lose the organic matter which improves the quality of the soil,” Kepler said. “When that happens, it can cost farmers, sometimes up to $25 per acre.”

He advised residents thinking of doing controlled burns to keep an eye on the weather forecast and be prepared to extinguish the fire immediately if conditions deteriorate.

“Look at the weather forecast, look at the way the wind is blowing, and try to set fires in the early morning or the early evening,” Kepler said.

“You need to have the equipment to handle the fire close by and stay on top of it. You need to understand, though, that if the fire looks like it is getting out of control it is usually too late.”

Kevin Smith can be contacted at (574) 732-5148 or via e-mail at kevin.smith@pharostribune.com