SARASOTA COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — A large brush fire in North Port forced residents to evacuate on Saturday evening, according to North Port Fire Rescue and police.
Officials said the fire was in the area of Sultan Avenue and Lown Street and covered 75 acres of land.
“It was wild, it was so big, in a matter of minutes, it was clear down the street,” a neighbor said.
As nearby homes are being threatened, officials said they have begun evacuating residents.
People who live in the area of the fire said it was neighbors helping each other as firefighters battled the blaze.
“Once the fire department got here, they were able to put out the majority of it because the fire was traveling so fast, they had to chase it, and they have a bunch of hoses and we were trying to keep it under control once the fire department moved down the road,” neighbor Wailen Blanchard said.
Crews said they would be on-site overnight to monitor the fires. By Sunday morning, the fire was 85% contained.
The fire temporarily closed parts of I-75 but has since reopened.
SARASOTA COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — A large brush fire in North Port forced residents to evacuate on Saturday evening, according to North Port Fire Rescue and police.
Officials said the fire was in the area of Sultan Avenue and Lown Street and covered 75 acres of land.
“It was wild, it was so big, in a matter of minutes, it was clear down the street,” a neighbor said.
As nearby homes are being threatened, officials said they have begun evacuating residents.
People who live in the area of the fire said it was neighbors helping each other as firefighters battled the blaze.
“Once the fire department got here, they were able to put out the majority of it because the fire was traveling so fast, they had to chase it, and they have a bunch of hoses and we were trying to keep it under control once the fire department moved down the road,” neighbor Wailen Blanchard said.
Crews said they would be on-site overnight to monitor the fires. By Sunday morning, the fire was 85% contained.
The fire temporarily closed parts of I-75 but has since reopened.
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