TOWN OF BUCHANAN — What began as a controlled burn Wednesday in the town of Buchanan eventually burned out of control, requiring multiple area departments to respond.
Combined Locks Fire & Rescue, Town of Buchanan Fire and Rescue and Combined Locks/Buchanan deputies from Outagamie County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched about 5:30 p.m. to the town of Buchanan for a report of a fire near a wood line.
The caller indicated that they could see smoke but no flames and thought it may be a controlled burn.
When deputies arrived on the scene they discovered a large fire unattended near a building.
A large smoke plume could be seen from several miles away.
Combined Locks Chief 2901 requested tenders from Harrison Fire Department and Hollandtown Fire Department to respond to the scene for additional water. The incident happened in a non-hydranted part of the town. Because this was initially thought to be a controlled burn, automatic dispatch of tenders was not recommended.
Once engines arrived on scene, the fire was quickly knocked down.
A skid steer was brought in by the property owner and they began tearing the large pile apart to allow firefighters access to still burning areas.
Tenders from Harrison and Hollandtown connected to engines from Combined Locks and Buchanan to draw water directly from the tender to the engine without the need to deploy drop tanks.
After approximately two hours on scene, all units were released.
There were no injuries.
“This is a reminder to ensure that all burning materials are fully extinguished and cool before you leave the area,” read a Facebook post from Combined Locks Public Safety. “Thankfully a neighbor saw the smoke and was able to call before the fire spread to a nearby building and the woods.”
