Wood Debris Fire Finally Extinguished After Burning For 4 Days
MILFORD TWP. (AP) - It took four days, but firefighters finally extinguished a wood debris fire the size of a football field at an industrial property about 30 miles northwest of Detroit, an official said Saturday.
Crews from six area departments and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources battled the blaze in Milford Township, finally putting it out 10:30 p.m. Friday, township supervisor Donald Green told The Associated Press.
The nearest fire hydrant was more than a mile away, The Detroit Free Press reported.
"We had 17 tanker trucks, pumpers and aerial," Green said. "We put a lot of water on it."
A landscaping company had been collecting the tree branches, stumps and wood construction debris and was planning to turn it into mulch. DNR crews used bulldozers to lift the wood waste from the ground so firefighters could spray water to smother the flames at the very bottom of the pile, Green said.
Firefighters first responded to the fire Tuesday. Milford Township crews struggled to extinguish the fire because of the large area involved and the types of materials burning, officials said in a release. Nearby fire departments and the DNR forest fire crew were called in to help Friday, Green said.
No injuries were reported.
Green said the cause of the fire is under investigation.
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