Firefighters from throughout Habersham County worked almost nonstop Sunday afternoon responding to several fires.
*A woods and grass fire was reported about 2:00, the first of three calls in a 30-minute time span. It was on John Wood Road in Hollywood and fanned by increasing winds grew to about 3.5 acres before it could be contained by Habersham and Cornelia firefighters and the Georgia Forestry Commission which plowed a break around the fire.
*Just minutes later, county EMS and the Baldwin Fire Department were called to a house fire on Mud Creek Road near Cornelia. That turned out to be another grass and woods fie that was stopped before it could reach the nearby house.
*At 2:25 p.m., personnel were paged to a structure fire believed to be in Baldwin on the Banks County side of the city. Large flames were reported visible from Lake Ridge Trail. Baldwin police and Habersham County sheriff’s deputies followed the column of smoke to help locate the burning home which was on Whippoorwill Way. In addition to Banks County Fire/EMS and the Baldwin Fire Department, a Habersham County tanker and the Lee Arrendale State Prison Fire Department Fire Team responded.
*Twenty minutes later, Habersham first responders got a call to a reported woods/grass fire in the 1800 block of Alleys Chapel Road near Clarkesville. First arriving units found a small fire and quickly extinguished it.
*About 4:00, Habersham EMS, the Clarkesville Fire Department, and Habersham County Sheriff’s Office personnel were dispatched to a residential fire on Ga. 115 across from Fred Pitts Road in Fairview. Several callers said a doublewide home with a number of additions was on fire.
“We responded to a residential structure fire and when we got here it was probably about 75% involved, heavy smoke showing from all corners of the building,” said EMS Battalion Chief Jeff Parker. “We pulled off our lines to start extinguishing the fire and we had a little problem with water in this area so we’re having to do a water shuttle” from a hydrant on Fred Pitts Road at Jim Thomas Road.
No injuries were reported, and the dwelling (pictured) was destroyed. Two dogs were able to escape the fire.
One firefighter was taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center Habersham, suffering from what was “probably dehydration,” Chief Parker said.
One lane of Ga. 115 was closed until about 6:30 with sheriff’s deputies and police officers directing traffic. The scene was cleared about 6:45. Cause of the fire is under investigation.
(Photo by Habersham Sheriff & EMS PIO Rob Moore)