Wildfire near Fresno’s Woodward Park injures 2 firefighters but risk to structures halted
Two firefighters were hurt as crews battled a brush fire that broke out Saturday afternoon in the river bottom next to Woodward Park in north Fresno.
The California Highway Patrol reported calls about 1:15 p.m. of a fire off Friant Road. Several engines quickly arrived, with additional resources added by 2:30 p.m.
Injuries to the firefighters were said to be minor, with one suffering burns to his feet. The other was said to be heat-related, as temperatures in Fresno and throughout the central San Joaquin Valley again climbed to 100 degrees.
An estimated 60 acres were burned, with some buildings at least briefly threatened.
“We did have some structures to the east, to the northeast that we had some concern about early on but (firefighters) did a great job to mitigate the fire spread,” Fresno Fire Capt. Devin McGuire said in a late-afternoon briefing.
There were 80-plus firefighters — including Fresno County, state and Clovis Fire crews — involved in the effort.
At the fire’s peak, a large smoke plume could be seen across the city, including at Herndon and Palm avenues.
Crews battled winds that moved flames toward Friant Road but used backfires to keep the blaze from progressing. By 4:30 p.m., crews were said to be mopping up final hot spots.
Still, it was expected that resources would remain on scene throughout the night to avoid any flare-ups.
Firefighters were able to keep the park from being seriously threatened. It helped, McGuire said, that the fire was surrounded by roads that acted as boundaries and also eased access.
“The wind conditions create challenges for us to try to keep it within those boundaries,” the captain said, “because the wind will kick up and the embers will go, but that’s why we applied so much resources to this fire to mitigate those chances of it getting outside” the containment area.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Friant was closed at Rice Road, according to the CHP, with traffic initially backed up to Copper Avenue. Roads re-opened at 6:30 p.m.
This story was originally published July 3, 2021 at 2:27 PM.