Clay-Putnam wildfire grows slightly as smoke blankets Northeast Florida

A growing and stubborn wildfire along the Clay and Putnam County border has grown slightly from the day before but remains 55% contained.

The so-called Railroad Fire began over the weekend as two separate blazes — one in Clay County off County Road 209, east of U.S. 17, and the other in Bostwick in Putnam County. The two fires merged early this week.

Speaking at a news conference Wednesday in Green Cove Springs, Florida Forest Service incident commander David Seacrest said the fire grew from 4,112 acres to 4,186 overnight. Containment increased from 50% to 55%.

Firefighters had eight tractor plows and an engine crew improving fire break lines — the cleared strips of land designed to stop the fire’s spread.

Airplanes and helicopters, including one from Flagler County, made 188 water drops. Right now, Seacrest said, the firefighting effort is “in really good shape.”

“We continue to build on our fire lines with heavy equipment,” he said just after noon. “We are preparing for our evening winds. It has shown us that in the evenings, (wind) gets kind of sporty, so we are going to build on our fire lines and prepare for the evening weather. And yesterday, there were new starts in the surrounding areas — new fires in other counties, so we are now strategically sharing resources.”

Clay County Fire Rescue Chief Lorin Mock said his firefighters have joined others from Putnam County to battle the cross-border wildfire, which likely began with the spark from a passing train.

“We are primarily concerned about structure protection,” Mock said. “We have been monitoring the fire lines along with our forestry partners to ensure that no structures are threatened. If we get spot fires near them, we are deploying assets immediately and we are going to remain in that posture for the immediate time frame.”

The Forest Service wildfire website showed four active fires in Putnam County, including the Railroad Fire. A 50-acre fire is burning near Millican Road, just south of the Railroad Fire, listed as 70% contained on Wednesday afternoon. A 343-acre blaze off Pace Court in the west part of the county is 85% contained. A 256-acre fire near Florida 19 and the town of Rodman is 80% contained.

No active wildfires are shown in Jacksonville or St. Johns County, but three are still burning just west of Hilliard in Nassau County. A 500-acre blaze near Conner-Nelson Road is 85% contained, as is a 100-acre fire north of Bay Road. A 1-acre fire west of U.S. 301 is almost totally contained, the website said.

The state asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency for financial assistance, saying the fires threatened more than 1,500 homes plus businesses and infrastructure around Clay and Putnam counties. FEMA said it would reimburse Florida for up to 75% of its firefighting costs.

Burn bans in effect

Baker, Clay, Nassau and Putnam counties all have enacted burn bans in response to the continuing drought and elevated wildfire risk in Northeast Florida, which state and local officials predict could last another two months or more. And while burning is prohibited year-round without a permit in Duval County, the fire department and city issued a total burn ban late Tuesday, meaning people could be charged with a misdemeanor for violations.

The ban prohibits all bonfires and open burning in Duval County. Outdoor grilling is allowed if done safely, but the city advises people that a spark could cause a fire. .

Mock asked all residents to “observe the burn ban.”

“We’ve deployed a lot of assets in both Putnam and Clay counties in support of this,” he said. “It is essential that we don’t get new starts. The weather conditions are obviously pretty dicey. … There’s no good reason to have an intentional fire start right now, and we are hoping our residents abide by that.”

Clay County officials said that no new voluntary evacuations have been enacted aside from those along Varney Road and Woodard Lane.

Smoke hazard

The National Weather Service warns that the region will face a smoke hazard at least through the weekend. That means smoky conditions at night and early morning because the wind settles down then.

“As we go into the late morning, the winds begin to pick up,” said Weather Service meteorologist Angie Enyedi. “That’s when that smoke begins to lift and disperse. But by the time that occurs, it is when the fire activity could get sporty, as we’ve heard, because the winds begin to increase and the atmosphere dries out.”

School district responses

The Clay County school district said the fires have not affected operations or dismissal times.

“We have identified a small number of families affected by bus route changes or current conditions and are working directly with them. Absences for these identified students are excused,” the district said in a statement. “Our district is actively monitoring local air quality. As a precaution, our current recommendation is to keep students and staff indoors whenever possible.”

Clay, Nassau and Duval county school officials all said they are keeping in contact with government officials to monitor the fires and air quality to ensure the safety of students and staff.

“All operations are being evaluated on a day-to-day basis as conditions may change,” the Nassau district said. “If road closures occur, bus service will not be available in affected areas.”

Like Clay, Nassau said it will excuse students who are absent due to fires. Families will be asked to provide a note to the school to document the absense.

Road closures

Smoke from the Railroad Fire was visible in parts of Duval County on Wednesday morning, but no roads were closed there or in Putnam or Clay counties, officials said. Law enforcement officials warn drivers to slow down and use low-beam headlights in smoky conditions.

Clay County residents can sign up for the SaferWatch app to get alerts from the Sheriff’s Office, Clay County School District and other county agencies about wildfires, weather issues or other information.

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Megan Mallicoat from Jacksonville Today contributed to this report.