May 13, 2008 10:15 am US/Pacific
Florida Wildfires Scar More Than 70 Homes
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (CBS) ―
Relentless wildfires burned into the early morning Tuesday across Florida's Atlantic coast, taxing firefighters and overwhelming residents trying to save their homes with garden hoses.
Firefighters in the Brevard County were working for a third day trying to stop flames that have scorched about 3,800 acres, about 6 square miles, in the neighboring towns of Palm Bay and Malabar. Four homes have been destroyed and about 70 damaged.
"Every time I turn around another house is on fire. We don't have enough resources on our own to do a job like this," said Palm Bay spokeswoman Yvonne Martinez.
"We can't force people to leave their homes. However, if they chose not to leave their homes, we are asking them to provide us with names of next-of-kin, because the situation is that volatile and unsafe right now," Martinez told CBS News Radio.
CBS affiliate WKMG-TV in Orlando reported that officials told them nearly 20 fires have scorched 7,000 acres of land in Central Florida and destroyed or damaged 72 homes.
As the fires began to spread, WKMG reported, a group of men and women formed to help people they didn't know save their homes. "I can't sit by and watch," resident Matt Call told the station. "I can't evacuate and run away. I have to step up."
Officials expressed concern early Tuesday after flare-ups overnight. Flare-ups when humidity is higher can be a bad sign because fire spreads even more quickly during the drier and windier daylight hours, said Palm Bay Assistant Fire Chief Jim Stables.
"It's going to be challenging to get the fire under control," he said.
All 18 schools in Palm Bay, including charter schools, will be closed Tuesday. Stretches of Interstate 95 and U.S. Highway 1 in Brevard County that had been closed due to smoke were reopened early Tuesday.
One of the homes destroyed in Malabar belonged to Butch Vanfleet, who built the home in 1980 and tried in vain to protect it with a garden hose.
"It's devastation," he said. "All you see is nothing but ash in between the palm trees and the palmetto. There's no grass. The fire just came so quickly, we barely got out of there."
Gov. Charlie Crist declared a state of emergency Monday as dry, windy weather worsened conditions. His orders allow Florida to use federal funds and bring local emergency workers under state control. It also allows Florida to call on other states for help, if necessary.
Firefighters may get some help Tuesday, since winds on the coast were expected to slow to 10 to 15 mph, according to the National Weather Service.
Authorities said the fire at Malabar may be the result of arson. A witness saw someone in a car drop something into an open field, and the fire started shortly afterward, an arson investigator said.
WKMG reported that the suspected arsonist may have set up to nine fires in Palm Bay.
About 80 miles north in Daytona Beach, an 800-acre fire forced an evacuation order for about 500 homes, but residents were allowed to return Monday evening. No structures were reported damaged, though officials warned embers could fly more than a mile from the blaze and spark new hot spots.
Ray Ademski, a 68-year-old retiree, left his Daytona Beach home with his wife and their important papers when he saw columns of smoke Sunday night around the subdivision. He hosed down the roof and turned on the sprinklers in his yard before the couple left for a hotel.
"I could feel the heat from both sides," said Ademski, who returned by bicycle Monday to survey the damage. "The smoke was going straight into my eyes. It was terrible."
Hundreds of firefighters worked the state's blazes, bulldozing highly flammable brush and vegetation and leaving behind less flammable dirt to keep the fires from advancing.
A Palm Bay firefighter was taken to a hospital and held overnight for precaution, but seems to be fine, authorities said. A Daytona Beach firefighter was also treated at the scene for minor injures.
The Florida Division of Emergency Management said in an e-mail that three responders were injured. It was unknown whether the two were among the three listed by the state. Mike Stone, emergency management spokesman, said he had no additional information on the injuries.
(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
