Bristol and South Bristol firefighters extinguished a small woods fire at Tracy Shore, a nature preserve in South Bristol, the afternoon of Thursday, Aug. 28.
South Bristol Assistant Fire Chief Gunnar Gunderson believes a lightning strike caused the fire.
“As close as we could figure, that’s probably what it was,” Gunderson said. “Conditions weren’t right for it to be a cigarette or anything.”
The fire “was quite a ways from everything, right out in the middle of the woods,” Gunderson said.
The fire departments responded at about 4 p.m.
Bristol brought a pumper and South Bristol its forestry truck. “We dragged about 1,200 feet of hose to get to it,” Gunderson said.
The firefighters worked steadily until dark, extinguishing the fire and scouring the area for hot spots where the fire could still be burning underground, Gunderson said.
“We searched the area,” he said. “We didn’t find anything.”
A Maine Forest Service helicopter was going to fly over the area Saturday, Aug. 30 to look for smoke, Gunderson said. South Bristol firefighters also planned to return to the area.
There were no injuries in the fire or the response, Gunderson said. About 17 firefighters responded from Bristol and South Bristol.
The town of South Bristol owns Tracy Shore, at the corner of Route 129 and S Road. The popular preserve features scenic trails through the woods to the Damariscotta River.
