Firefighters douse Holbrook blaze

Firefighters extinguished a controlled burn that spread into a half-acre of surrounding brush in Holbrook on Sunday.

Resident Roy Funez was burning behind Holbrook RV and Mobile Home Park.

He was just about finished when the late morning winds came up and blew hot sparks and debris into grass and sagebrush.

Funez tried to stop the spread, but it quickly got out of control.

Topaz Ranch Estates volunteers responded to the fire and quickly extinguished it. Topaz Lake volunteer firefighters also responded to the blaze.

"It was a good thing the winds were light and it wasn't a few weeks from now or we could have had another repeat of 1994," said Topaz Lake Volunteer Fire Chief Dave Thomas, referring to the Holbrook fire that devastated the base of Minnihaha Canyon.

With the unusually wet winter and spring in the area, grasses and ladder fuels have flourished, according to firefighters. And, even though they are all still green from the last hard rains, there is a lot to burn.

Residents are cautioned to use care and recreational users of the area need to be on their guard when going off road in the Pinenut Mountains.

June 11 will be the last day for open burning in Douglas County. Burn permits are required. For more information contact Fire Marshal Steve Eisele, 783-6415.