Golden Gate Estates brush fire: 300 acres, 25% contained according to officials
Collier County firefighters battled a brush fire as it approached nearby homes in Golden Gate Estates Friday afternoon, as high temperatures, low humidity and high winds fed the flames.
Greater Naples Fire Chief J. Nolan Sapp said Friday evening that there were no injuries or deaths at the time. The Collier County Sheriff's office reported late Friday night that all evacuations had been lifted.
The Collier County Sheriff's Office reported the fire covered 100 acres on Friday evening. On Saturday morning, the fire was reported to be up to 300 acres and 25 percent contained.
According to the Sheriff's Office, the evacuated streets included Jung Boulevard, 16th Avenue Northwest, 18th Avenue Northwest, 20th Avenue Northwest, 22nd Avenue Northwest and 24th Avenue Northwest.
Immokalee Road was closed from Woodcrest Drive to Randall Boulevard. Wilson Boulevard was closed between 24th Avenue Northeast and 47th Avenue Northeast.
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The National Weather Service reported winds topping 16 mph and temperatures about 87 degrees on Friday evening.
Neighbors and bystanders pulled off along Jung Boulevard.
Many walked out of their cars, some pulling out their phones.
Several neighbors asked authorities about their unattended pets.
Vanessa Koolhof, 65, a retired WJLA ABC-7 journalist, told the Daily News this isn’t the first brush fire she’s seen, but expressed concern.
She’s lived on Jung Boulevard for three years, she said.
Jeffrey Mera, 31, said he noticed a “big plume of smoke” as he was driving home.“It didn't look that serious when I passed by,” Mera said. “I went home and then I left. I come back and the whole road is blocked off.”Mera said at the time one of the backyards began to catch fire.“It looks like it started somewhere in the wild area,” Mera said. “It didn't look like the center of it was in the backyard of the house.”Mera said he overheard another bystander say it was the worst fire she had seen in 23 years.“So that's saying a lot considering we've had some pretty bad fires over the last 10 years,” Mera said.
Brush fires in May 2021 burned thousands of acres in Golden Gate Estates, destroying at least two homes and damaging three.
Collier County institutes burn ban
The Board of County Commissioners authorized a burn ban in Collier County, effective Saturday.
The ban prohibits open burning, which is any outdoor fire or open combustion of material that produces visible emissions, of trash and yard waste, which includes vegetative matter resulting from landscaping and yard maintenance operations.
The decision came after a consultation between the Collier County Bureau of Emergency Services, Florida Forest Service, Collier County Fire Chiefs’ Association, Collier County Sheriff’s Office, and the National Weather Service. The group jointly identified a need to have a burning ban become effective immediately after certain environmental conditions were met, including abnormally dry conditions that are expected to linger through the end of March.
The ban includes all unincorporated Collier County.
In addition, outdoor grills, stoves, cookers and smokers may be used in the preparation of food if the cooking fire is controlled and attended to. All outdoor cooking areas shall be free of burnable materials within an area having a circumference of three feet beyond the nearest edge of the cooking fire.
Violation of the order, if it is found to cause irreparable or irreversible damage, can be up to $15,000.
The ban will remain in effect until further notice.
For more information, call 311 or (239) 252-8999.
Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Twitter @TomasFRoBeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran and Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Golden Gates Estates brush fire threatens homes, residents evacuated
