By Brian C. Rittmeyer
The Pittsburgh Tribune Review

FORD CITY, Pa. — Numerous brush fires were reported throughout the region Sunday.

In one of the larger ones, three firefighters suffered heat exhaustion in a fire that burned 15 acres in Cadogan in Armstong County, Ford City fire Chief Scott Gaiser said.

At least 70 firefighters from nine departments fought the blaze, shortly after 2 p.m., for about three hours. It was heading toward structures on Glade Run Road in North Buffalo, but no buildings were damaged, Gaiser said.

One Ford Cliff firefighter was taken to a hospital for heat exhaustion, and two were treated at the scene.

A half-dozen brush fires had been reported in Armstrong County by early yesterday evening, emergency dispatchers said.

The Kiski Township Fire Department responded to two brush fires, one at 2 p.m. on Edmon Road and another at 4:30 p.m. on Water Street. Both were caused by residents burning trash, said Chief Rich Frain. No buildings were damaged, and no one was hurt.

The first fire burned a 100- by 200-foot area; the second was twice that size.

A fire in Upper Burrell burned three to four acres on a steep hillside.

Firefighters from five departments fought the blaze at Menk and Pleasant Valley roads, Upper Burrell fire Chief Curt Britton said.

The call came in around 3:30 p.m., and firefighters were at the scene for two and a half hours. Firefighters relied on tankers for water and had to cut down and chop up trees to be sure the fire was out, Britton said. The cause was unknown.

"They always burn uphill. They never burn downhill," Britton said.

Butler County dispatchers reported a few small fires in Eau Claire in East Butler and Adams.

Allegheny County reported four countywide.

Gaiser said the Cadogan fire was accidental. He said there were unconfirmed reports of children in the area but that there was no way to determine the cause.

Getting to the fire was difficult, with firefighters having to rely on four-wheel drive vehicles, old logging roads and a gas line road.

"It took a lot of footwork to get back to it. It took a while to get a handle on it," he said, praising the firefighters' efforts.

Gaiser said it was his department's first brush fire of the year, and the potential for more blazes is great.

"You may think everything is still damp, but with the wind blowing, it's all dried out," he said. "Right now is prime time for brush fires. Everything's dead, and nothing has started to green up yet."

The last rain was recorded Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service. Since then, above-normal temperatures and sunshine have dried out the vegetation.

Frain said the cold, dry air has taken all of the moisture out of the grass and straw on the ground.

"It's like a firebox. It's ready to go off," Frain said. "It's the same thing every year."

Although there had been heavy snow melt and rain, it doesn't take long for material on the ground to dry out enough to burn, said meteorologist Bob Coblentz with the weather service in Moon.

The risk of brush fires may be reduced somewhat early this week. Rain was forecast to have begun after midnight, and there is rain in the forecast for today and Tuesday, Coblentz said.

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