Burlington Fire Department Extinguishes Two-Alarm Brush Fire

BURLINGTON — Chief Andrew Connerty reports that the Burlington Fire Department and mutual aid partners extinguished a two-alarm brush fire amid a red flag warning due to extreme fire danger on Tuesday. 

On Tuesday, April 11, at approximately 2:16 p.m., the Burlington Fire Department received a 911 call reporting a brush fire in the area of 13 Arboretum Way. 

Engine 1 was the first company at the scene and found a brush fire approaching two buildings on Arboretum Way. A working fire was declared and a full assignment responded as several small mulch fires around the buildings were knocked down.

The remaining brush fire grew to about 1.25 acres, pushed its way up a 70-foot hill and threatened to burn three vehicles that were parked in the area. Firefighters were able to keep the vehicles from catching on fire, though they did suffer damage from heat. 

A second alarm was struck to get more manpower to the scene, since the fire was burning in difficult terrain and threatened the Beacon Village Apartments and two homes on Peach Orchard Road. Firefighters had to surround the fire to keep it contained. It took over three hours to completely extinguish the brush fire and cool down the hot spots.

Nine Burlington fire apparatus were supported at the scene by mutual aid from Billerica, Woburn, Reading and Wilmington. A member of Massachusetts Forest Fire Control also responded and assisted companies with cutting down several trees that were burning. 

Firefighters from Winchester and Stoneham covered Burlington stations during the fire. A Stoneham engine company extinguished another small brush fire on Mall Road during that time, and a Winchester fire engine responded to several medical calls along with Burlington Ambulance 1, which was staffed by Burlington paramedics who were called back into work.

Dry, windy weather led the National Weather Service to declare a red flag warning on Tuesday. A red flag warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now or will shortly. Any fires that start may spread rapidly and become difficult to extinguish.

The cause of the brush fire remains under investigation by the Burlington Fire Department. There were no reported injuries.