The Hastings Highlands fire department got called to the scene of a bush fire on Woodcox Road on Saturday.
“It started in the backyard and went up into the forest,” Fire Chief Danny Koroscil tells the MyBancroftNow.com newsroom.
He says they got called to the scene around 2 PM over the weekend and were battling the blaze until just before 11 PM. Koroscil says six hectares ended up burning.
The MNRF was called to the scene for assistance is surveying the fire. Koroscil says they flew over the fire in a helicopter while 35 members of the local firefighting crew worked to put it out.
“Even though we’ve had some rain, the woods are still fairly dry,” Koroscil warns. He says the green-up period is still on-going so if you are burning, he says you need to be careful. “We encourage people to be safe when they’re burning outside of daytime burn hours,” Koroscil adds.
A daytime burn ban is in effect in Hastings Highlands and five other North Hastings municipalities. That means open-air burning is not allowed between 7 AM and 7 PM. Wollaston Township is the only one to have a total fire ban on.
Written by Mathew Reisler