I-75 reopens in southwest Florida as wildfire continues

NAPLES, Fla. (AP/WSVN) — A section of Interstate 75 known as Alligator Alley reopened Thursday afternoon after four brush fires that eventually merged in southwest Florida caused it to close a day earlier, authorities said.

The four fires merged and grew into a 8,500-acre (3,440-hectare) fire on Thursday, according to an evening tweet from the Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services.

The fast-moving flames scorched vehicles and reduced trees to ash, forcing families out of their homes.

The Florida Highway Patrol said on Twitter that troopers had reopened Alligator Alley. The toll road had been closed after smoke caused visibility issues. The agency advised motorists should still proceed with caution.

As of Thursday night, the fire is about 5% contained, officials said.

https://twitter.com/FDACS/status/1260738133743874049?s=20

Alligator Alley extends from near Naples on Florida’s Gulf Coast, to Broward County in South Florida.

On Wednesday night, four fires were burning a total of about 400 acres (162 hectares), officials said at the time.

Residents of Golden Gate Estates in Collier County said they tried putting out the flames with any liquids they could find, to no avail.

“It came right up to the house,” said resident Bev Rogers. “When it comes, you start to get prepared, you start to get worried.”

The fire destroyed everything on Rogers’ two-acre homestead, except for the house itself. Its siding was melted by the heat of the flames.

“Everything we owned. We’ve been at the same place for 25 years, even more,” said Rogers. “That’s everything we’ve worked for.”

The Florida Forestry Service used choppers and other aircraft to dump water from nearby canals in an attempt to put out the flames.

7Skyforce HD hovered above a sink and an oven outside of a burned shell.

One of the fires threatened about 30 homes in Golden Gate Estates, according to the Florida Forestry Service. Greater Naples Fire Rescue District Chief Kingman Schuldt told the Naples Daily News that the fires have since displaced several residents and damaged or destroyed more than a dozen structures.

A mobile home park has been evacuated and residents have been told to stay out for the near future as strong winds fuel the fires that continue to burn on both sides of Alligator Alley.

The Collier County Sheriff’s Office and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission were coordinating voluntary evacuations Wednesday night, but officials moved on to mandatory evacuations by Thursday.

The Greater Naples Fire Rescue District led efforts to fight the blazes, while two Lee County strike teams and one Sarasota County team also responded, Schuldt said.

Speaking with reporters Thursday afternoon, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis provided an update on efforts to fight the brush fires.

“I was able to get a brief. We obviously have state resources engaged and have federal resources as well, so this is moving pretty quickly,” he said. “I snow a similar track of what we’ve seen here [happened] three years ago, but these next 24, 48 hours are going to be very important.”

Fire crews from Miami-Dade and Broward county were joining the effort Thursday evening, officials said.

The South Florida agencies assisting Naples firefighters are Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, Miami Fire Rescue, Coral Gables Fire Rescue and Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue.

Crews said they’re making sure hot spots don’t get too close to homes in the Golden Gate Estates area.

“We made a line. We put a water line toward the house at the end, and now we’re watching to make sure [the fire] doesn’t jump over,” said MDFR Lt. Wildredo Serrano.

The cause of the brush fires remains under investigation.

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