Big Cypress Huckabee wildfire

[Keith W]

A large wildfire has burned more than 20,000 acres in the Deep Lake / Fire Prairie area east of Turner River Road and south of I-75. SR 29 was closed this morning between US 41 at Copeland up to Oil Well Rd. near Sunniland, a little north of Alligator Alley. The 80 miles of the Alley was also closed this morning but is now open again.

http://www.winknews.com/Local-Florida/2013-04-02/Florida-highway-pa...

The fire started early afternoon last Friday. I was heading north on Turner River Rd.around 2:00 PM, driving back to my camp at Bear Island on Friday, when I spotted a line of smoke rising from the area of Fire Prairie Trail. I stopped at the trailhead and walked out on the trail about 3/4 mile until it broke out of the trees into the open sawgrass prairie. I could see the fire about 50-75 yards ahead. It was burning along both sides of the trail and the northeast wind was driving it west and south toward Deep Lake and SR 29. I could still see the far line of the fire at this point, and the near line was spreading slowly toward me, torching the sawgrass, palmettos, cabbage palms and other scrub. I tried calling Park Dispatch to report the fire, but I couldn't get a call out (thanks Verizon!!). I turned back hoping to get a cell signal closer to the Alley, and ran into a group of 4 young men walking out on the trail. They said they had been out on the trail earlier before the fire started and were getting ready to leave when they saw the smoke and came out again to investigate. One of them had a phone that had a good signal and I gave him the Dispatch number and he was able to get a call in to report the fire. Not much more I could do so I headed back to camp.

Later that evening after dark I could see the red glow of the fire on the western horizon, so I drove out to Turner River Rd to check it out. When I got to the Fire Prairie trailhead there were several BCNP Fire control trucks and buggy trailers parked along the roadside. I drove farther south to the north end of Airplane Prairie where I could get a look at the fire in the distance. The fire had spread and now spanned about 40 degrees of the horizon. I had my camera with me and I was able to get enough photos to make the pano you see here. Sorry for the blurry image, I was shooting 5-8 second exposures in the dark with a monopod.

Saturday morning I left camp before daylight, about 6 AM, and the fire trucks and buggies were gone. The western horizon was dark, no red glow of fire. I figured that the BCNP firefighters were successful in putting out the blaze. On my way back that afternoon about 5 PM I saw how wrong I was - the smoke was rising again in the west, and the the fire trucks and trailers were stacked up again at Fire Prairie trailhead. The wildfire was still going strong and was now being driven NE toward I-75 by a strong SW wind.

On Sunday I broke camp and left Bear Island at noon. The western sky was a solid pall of gray and black smoke. The fire trucks were now parked around the I-75 overpass, and I could see the firefighters working along the forest edge south of the highway. I found out later that they were lighting a backfire to keep the wildfire from jumping the Alley. A helicopter carrying a large water bucket was circling the area south of the highway.

As I made my way down Turner River Rd I could see active fires burning along the roadside, more backfires started to the deprive the wildfire of fuel. The wildfire itself was raging less than 100 yards west of the road and I was able to shoot some video. A firefighter stopped to talk to me while I was shooting and told me what they were doing and he seemed to think that the fire would do a lot of good. I had my doubts - this same area was hit by the catastrophic Deep Fire just 4 years ago that burned over 30,000 acres and some areas never completely recovered. The local wildlife was also not happy - I counted 4 diamondbacks crossing the road ahead of the fire as I drove south.

[Jay]

Thanks.  The rejuvenation is truly spectacular!

[Swamp Hunter]

Fires are necessary for pinelands (pine, palmetto, cabbage palm) and grasslands but it saddens me to see large oak trees die.  I hope we didnt lose too many more large oaks.,

[yakmaster]

If we burn often enough, the oaks are protected. There's not enough understory to burn them. Fire takes out the new growth & brush, making for a more open forest/hammock/island.

 

The problem is when we go years without fire and the brush accumulates under the big oaks, then there's plenty of fuel to bring down even the giants!

 

The first prescribed burn program in the park service was at Everglades. And in the whole national park system, the most active prescribed burn program is Big Cypress'.
 
Dale said:

Fires are necessary for pinelands (pine, palmetto, cabbage palm) and grasslands but it saddens me to see large oak trees die.  I hope we didnt lose too many more large oaks.,

[Swamp Hunter]

I agree.  Hopefully it also stays damp under the oaks. There is usually a deep accumulation of rotting leaves.  I remember seeing large black dead oaks at Bear Island 2 years ago when I worked there. I guess they didnt burn enough or it was just too dry..