Recent dry weather leads to grass fires
Two controlled burns of prairies get out of control
Until this weekend, an extremely dry month has led to numerous grass fires in the area and a call by fire officials for people to be careful when burning.
April has seen only about a quarter of an inch of rain and has been windy, which has led to numerous grass fires in the area, and in particular last Thursday, April 16.
Two fires were attempts at controlled burns of prairie grass that got out of control.
The Lake Pewaukee Sanitary District was burning a prairie in the area of Highway KE and Glacier Road in the Town of Delafield on Thursday when the fire got out of control, said assistant fire chief Tom Kinley of the Town of Delafield Fire Department.
The fire was called in at about 12:30 p.m. and put out "pretty quickly," he said.
About four hours later, another fire broke out just north of that area. A City of Pewaukee resident was burning prairie on his property on the north side of Highway JJ when it got out of control and spread eastward in the Town of Delafield at about 4:15 p.m.
City of Pewaukee, Town of Delafield and Hartland firefighters contained the fire to the marshy area north of Highway JJ and east of Highway KE. Kinley said no structures were in danger. The fire was contained in about an hour.
In the City of Delafield, a fire broke out at about 2 p.m. Thursday near Highway 83 and Mariner Drive. City of Delafield Deputy Fire Chief Matt Fennig said an 800-square-foot area was burned. The fire was put out in a short time.
A fire burned about two acres in a field behind a pair of buildings at W260 N8421 Highway 164 in the Town of Lisbon on Thursday.
Firefighters from the Lisbon, Merton, Pewaukee and Sussex fire departments kept the blaze from reaching the buildings but were unable to prevent it from destroying two cars parked in the field and damaging "a little bit of a cornfield" nearby. Lisbon Fire Department officials said they couldn't determine their value, but the cars appeared to be "abandoned junkers."
Lisbon firefighters received their first call at 1:30 p.m., and their last units left the scene at about 2:40 p.m. after the fire was extinguished.
Another fire reportedly broke out in North Lake on Thursday, but details were not available.
Hartland Fire Chief Augie Wilde said there have been some small fires in the village. Hartland, like other area communities, bans burning except for recreational burning.
Wilde he offered another piece of advice: "Watch where you throw those cigarettes," he said.
Kinley said anyone attempting a controlled burn should be careful, keeping an eye on the fire and a hose nearby. He also said burning should not be done on windy days.
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