Several area fire departments–including , and –were dispatched to a on April 10. Though the fire is still burning, the fire departments have left the scene.
"We're still monitoring the situation and the pile has not changed," said North Branford . "It's still burning significantly, but right now, the property owner has been told to get excavators and operators and tear the pile apart."
Once the excavators come in to take apart the pile–which is made up of storm damage debris like stumps, leaves, branches, etc.–the fire department will return to extinguish any other threats.
North Branford supplied water from a nearby pond to the North Haven engine, which pumped it onto the pile. About 25 North Branford volunteer firefighters were on the scene.
Seward said, because the brush pile is made up of only organic materials, the smoke is more of a nuisance than a hazard. A DEEP representative also assessed the scene.
"If someone has a preexisting respiratory problem, it [the smoke] could affect them," said . "If people choose to use a clothesline or have open windows, they will also be affected by the smell of smoke."
The towns responded to the fire as part of the written mutual aid agreements with surrounding towns. The departments that responded have drilled together in the past.
"It goes without saying that no matter where the incident is, we always depend on each other without hesitiation," said Seward. "Something like this really demonstrates the cooperation between departments. The training we've done becomes invaluable in a situation like this because the implentation has to be very smooth."
