- April 20, 2024
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by: Julie Murphy
Public Information Officer, Flagler County Sheriff's Office
Flagler County Fire Rescue is sending one of its engines and four firefighters to the Panhandle to battle wildfires.
“I coordinated two strike teams for deployment comprised of 10 engines and 44 firefighters from five counties, including ours, and Jacksonville,” said Fire Chief Don Petito. “There are 11 fires in the region – two large fires that destroyed homes. Engine 16 deployed directly from the station last night around 9 p.m.”
Flagler County firefighters Dave Hudson, Sean Walker, Alex Patton and David Dufek deployed as part of one of the strike teams. The crews will work a three-day mission.
Petito reported that the Musette Bayou Fire in South Walton County grew to over 600 acres and burned 100 structures, including 30 homes. The 5-mile Swamp Fire in Santa Rosa County started out as a 250-acre fire that quickly grew to more than 2000 acres, and burned 18 structures.
“It will be interesting to see how the command post, evacuation centers, and crews working the fire line will be able to practice social distancing while concentrating on their tasks,” Petito said.
There are 52 active wildfires in the state. The Keetch-Byram Drought Index in Flagler County is 360 on a scale where the driest condition is 800.
“We are in pretty good shape here,” Petito said. “Humidity is low today and the winds are high, but that is changing for the weekend. I spoke to Anthony Pettalatt, the Bunnel District Manager for the Florida Forest Service and part of the incident management team for the 5-mile Swamp Fire, and he said there is only one small fire in our district in Volusia County.”
