JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A man whose trash fire sparked a small brush fire on the Westside has been cited for illegal burning, according to the Florida Forest Service.
Forestry officials said Donald Gray was issued a notice of violation and is being forced to pay the amount it cost to put out the flames.
Officials said Gray, who owns a mobile home on Dusty Road, admitted that he was burning household items in an outdoor fire pit and that he left the fire unattended. That's when an ember sparked a small brush fire that shot flames 30 feet into the air.
Gray and his wife and their 2-year-old daughter made it out of the home safely after neighbors alerted them to the fire.
"They said it was an accident. He was burning boxes, and he thought the fire was out, and he went back in to cook, and it wasn't out," neighbor Linda Daniels said.
Daniels said the flames came within 100 feet of her house and threatened the entire neighborhood where the land is bone dry.
Firefighters were called to the home on Dusty Road about 8:30 p.m. Wednesday because of the brush fire, which burned about 0.2 acres before firefighters with the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department and Florida Forest Service were able to douse the flames.
Firefighters used two tanker trucks to pour 6,000 gallons of water on the area and were able to control the fire within 20 minutes. Florida Forest Service helped put out the remaining hot spots nearby.
Firefighters said even the smallest spark or ember can erupt into a major brush fire. Daniels said the entire neighborhood learned a lesson Wednesday night.
"We have our little bonfires out here in the back sometimes, but I won't ever have another one," Daniels said.
Forestry Division spokeswoman Annaleasa Winter said Gray is being fined $150. That's the amount of money firefighters estimate it cost to put out the blaze, which could have grown and destroyed neighbors' houses, if it wasn't for the quick response time.
"We issued a notice of violation, letting that individual know that they are in violation," Winter said. "You have to maintain that burn at all times."
Duval County has a standing ban against outdoor burning. Officials with the Florida Forest Service said in places where outdoor burning is allowed, landowners are responsible for keeping any debris burn contained and must follow safe burning rules.
"The fuel, the forest, the vegetation is just ready to burn," Forestry Division spokeswoman Annaleasa Winter said. "It doesn't take long for it to get off into the forest and cause a wildfire."
DOCUMENT: Know the law for yard burning
Yard debris includes grass clippings, brush, leaves, tree limbs, palm fronds, etc. that are a result of yard maintenance. It is illegal to burn household garbage, including paper products, officials said.
They said rules for safe burning are:
- Clear down to bare soil around your pile to prevent it from spreading
- Never leave a fire unattended, and make sure it is out before you leave
- Keep a shovel and water hose handy
- The fire must be ignited after 9 a.m. and extinguished one hour before sunset to minimize smoke
- Don't burn on windy days or when the humidity is below 35 percent
- Your fire must be contained to an 8-foot diameter pile or non-combustible barrel and must be at least 25 feet from forests, 25 feet from your house, 50 feet from a paved public road and 150 feet from other occupied buildings
- Burning yard waste does not require an authorization from the Florida Forest Service, but you should check with your local city, county or Florida Forest Service officials to see if there are any restrictions in your area
May and June are the driest part of the year in Florida and under the current drought conditions, it is best to find alternative methods to dispose of yard debris, forestry officials said.
The drought index right now in Northern Florida is in the 700s. An 800 drought index means there are desert-like conditions.
Current Active Wildfires in Northeast Florida
| Start Date | County | Fire Name | Location | Acres | Fire Cause | Containment | Comments |
| 6/17/15 | Baker | Cow Pen Road | 10,000 block of Cowpen Road | 4 | Debris Burn | 100% | Still smoking |
| 61/17/5 | Baker | Mutual Aid USFS | Two fires off CR250 half mile north of US 90 – they are 3 miles apart | 65 100 | Lightning |
| Osceola National Forest has 2 fires near the battlefield east of Ocean Pond –have fire lines around them but need to burnout vegetation inside lines |
| 5/11/15 | Clay | Wheeler Branch | Jennings State Forest | 50 | Authorized Burn | 100% | No smoke showing- continue to monitor |
| 5/31/15 | Clay | 226 | Bayard Conservation Area 1 mile east of US 17 and south of 226 | 80 | Debris Burn | 100% | Continue to monitor- no smoke showing |
| 6/14/15
| Clay | Fleming Island | Half mile south of CR220 and half mile west of Hwy 17 | 8 | Undetermined | 100% | Put 4,000 gal of water – still smoking on the interior |
| 6/15/15 | Clay | Lisa Lynn | Off Lisa Lynn Drive, South SR 21 in Keystone Heights | 1 | Undetermined | 100% | Put 5,000 gal water- no smoke showing – continue to monitor |
| 6/2/15
| Duval | Burma Road | East of 9B and 2 miles north of Phillips Hwy | 0.1 | Lightning | 100% | No smoke showing |
| 6/9/15 | Duval | Sandhill | East of Phillips Hwy and north of Nocatee Pkwy | 1 | Lightning | 100% | Still some interior smoke- put 300 gal water |
| 6/10/15 | Duval | San Pablo #1 | 1.75 miles south of JTB and 3 miles east of I295 | 15 | Lightning | 100% | Still smoking –continue to monitor |
| 6/12/15 | Duval | San Pablo #2 | 1.75 miles south of JTB and 3 miles east of I295 | 48 | Lightning | 100% | Put 3,000 gal water – continue to monitor |
| 6/15/15 | Duval | Island | 11,000 block of New Berlin Road at Island Dr. | 1.8 | Lightning | 100% | Put 1,800 gal water – no smoke showing- continue to monitor |
| 6/17/15 | Duval | Dusty Road | Normandy Blvd and McClelland Road | 0.2 | Debris Burn | 100% | JFRD put 3,000 gal water – no smoke showing last night |
| 6/8/15 | Putnam | Kenwood | In the Ocklawaha area of Rodman Dam | 1.7 | undetermined | 100% | Continue to monitor |
| 6/13/15 | Putnam | Old Buck Springs | 100 block of Buck Springs Rd 2 miles west of 309D | 51 | Lightning | 100% |
Still smoking – put 100 gal of water –continue to monitor |
| 6/14/15 | Putnam | Yelvington | Yelvington Rd, 4 miles east of hwy17 | 10 | Equipment | 100% | Still smoking on interior- continue to monitor |
| 6/14/15 | Putnam | Middle Road | Middle Road, 4 miles west of Hwy 17 | 25 | Lightning | 100% | Put 600 gal water – continue to monitor |
| 5/21/15 | St Johns | Creek Side | North of 210 and west of 2209 | 56.7 | Lightning | 75% | Put 65,000 gal water –still smoking |
| 5/28/15 | St Johns | 12-Mile Swamp | Quarter mile west of US 1 and 2 miles north of International Golf Pkwy | 38.8 | Undetermined Under investigation | 100% | Continue to monitor |
| 6/9/15
| St Johns | GP | I-95 and SR 207 | 3.5 | Lightning | 100% | No smoke showing- continue to monitor |
| 6/13/15 | St Johns | River Town | 3000 block of SR 13 near ball fields | 84 | Lightning | 90% | Still smoking on the west side – crews improved firelines |
| 6/13/15 | St Johns | Bombing Range | Greenbriar, east of Colony Subdivision | 30 | Lightning | 90% | Still contained -fire has burned itself out –continue to monitor |
| 6/14/15 | St Johns | Anastasia Church | 5000 block of south A1A | 0.2 | Lightning | 100% | Few hot spots on interior- continue to monitor |
| 6/16/15 | St Johns | Saintsville | 7500 block of CR208 | 2.5 | Undetermined | 80% | No flames and minimal smoke – continue to monitor |