TAMARAC, FLA. (WSVN) - A smoky situation continues to smolder near the swamp after a brush fire sparked in Northwest Broward County.
The brush fire sparked on Sunday afternoon and continues to burn at 0% containment.
The blaze, known as the Atlantic Fire, has scorched more than 4,700 acres as of late Monday night, according to the Florida Forest Service.
Many people spent their Sunday evening driving out to the Sawgrass Trailhead at Atlantic Boulevard in Coral Springs to fish, take a walk or see the plumes of black smoke fill the sky.
“It wasn’t bad at first, but now I think it’s getting worse,” said Liam Brown.
“My phone died because I was at the beach all day, and I had to go home because [Ed] flies drones, and I said, ‘You got to load up,'” said Teri Fisher.
On Monday, FFS crews mapped out the best strategy to fight the blaze before they begin doing water drops.
“We were able to do a reconnaissance flight. Our firefighters are actively managing the fire,” said FFS’ Michelle Danielson.
Danielson said the fire is burning in a wet conservation area of the Everglades, proving challenging for firefighters as they assess their tactics to contain the blaze.
“In areas that are wet, our heavy machinery that might be able to go in like Alltracks, if there’s no access points or if it could be potentially stuck in the fuels, we’re going to do what we can, given the accessibility,” she said.
Officials said as of Monday afternoon, the blaze is moving west away from communities.
Crews conducted a tactical burn to starve the flames in hopes of controlling the spread.
But on Sunday, drivers along the Sawgrass Expressway could see the smoke for miles.
“It started this small, and we decided two hours later to come back out, and it’s spreading like crazy. Thank gosh it’s going west, not east,” said Travis Davis.
“I live on the other side of the Sawgrass. Just thought I’d take a ride out here and take a look for myself to see if there’s anything to be concerned about,” said Ira. “It’s been very dry, and there’s been fires down in Dade County, ao now it’s up here in our neck of the woods.”
“I could see it from miles away. Actually, I decided to come over here. I brought my drone. Just so happened to have it in my car. It’s kinda of far for me to get any good pics,” said Clive.
This is the latest brush fire to spark in South Florida in recent weeks. Firefighters in Miami-Dade recently got the upper hand on three blazes that sparked and raged on for multiple days.
Fire season in South Florida usually peaks April through May and begins to wind down by July. This year, it appears the season is dragging on as Florida has seen over 2,100 fires since January, burning a total of 135,000 acres.
As for the Atlantic Fire, crews continue hard at work to hold back the flames.
According to officials, it’s unclear what caused the fire.
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