47 wildfires hit MA on Monday as crews battle flames – Boston News, Weather, Sports

SALEM, MASS. (WHDH) – Wildfires burned in wooded areas around Massachusetts over the weekend and into Monday amid dry and windy conditions.

According to the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services, 47 fires were burning across the state as of Monday morning – including 18 new fires since Sunday.

A woman was found dead in a burning warehouse in Millbury on Sunday evening, the department said.

Firefighters extinguished the brush fire near the Blackstone River Bikeway near Route 146, the department said. Another bushfire burned in Weston, where firefighters worked to contain the flames.

In Stoughton, hotspots are spread across approximately 10 hectares of nature reserve.

“At first they thought they could handle it, but then they realized it was all back in that preserve,” Stoughton Fire Chief Michael Carroll said.

Carroll said his goal was to contain the flames and keep them away from homes on Woodpecker Road and Sparrow Drive.

“For me right now it's like, if I can contain and protect the neighborhood on the back that runs south, it's going to go into the water, and I'm just going to let that go,” he said.

The emergency services would also take action against fires underground, he said.

“I guess it burns down to the roots and weakens them, and we saw about four or five trees fall,” Carroll said.

He said he expected firefighters to tackle the fire in the next few days.

SKY7-HD spotted a U.S. National Guard helicopter dumping 600-gallon buckets of water on the Middleton fire Monday afternoon. The buckets were refilled at nearby Middleton Pond.

“So far, about 250 or more than 270 acres have burned,” Middleton Fire Chief Douglas LeColst said. “Very dry.”

7News observed a brush hauler from North Reading having his tank refilled at the scene by a fire truck.

“Obviously we need a good water supply, and we have a fire hydrant right out there, and the brush trucks come out and fill up, they drive over the rough terrain and pour the water on the fire.”

Randy Brown was walking his dog in the smoke on Monday afternoon. The 30-year-old Middleton resident said he was worried about his home, which is just a few thousand feet from the fire.

“I was surprised at how quickly it grew. I was here Sunday morning and they had just brought in the first truck and there was a little white smoke. But today we have a bushfire,” Brown said.

He said the smoke was blowing toward his house.

Firefighters in Salem worked throughout Saturday night and Sunday morning to extinguish a large brush fire near the Lynn Line.

The fire broke out near the Walmart on Highland Avenue, sending a large plume of smoke billowing across the neighborhood.

Emergency crews could be seen using ladder trucks to run water pipes into the forest where brush and trees were burning.

Additional fires were reported in Beverly and Canton. There was a smoky smell in the air in Boston on Monday.

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