A fire in a Ross County state park brought numerous departments from several counties together, including law enforcement.
A forrest fire — estimated at around 40 acres, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources — was burning along the edge of Tar Hollow State Park Wednesday night. The center of the fire was primarily on Poes Run Road along a large hill.
The location of the fire proved to be challenging for firefighters. Because of the remote location and steep incline being surrounded by brush, foliage, and more, the fire spread rapidly, keeping firefighters from Harrison Township busy. So much effort was put in by the responding department that they had to call for additional manpower and resources from multiple counties, including Pickaway, Vinton, and Jackson, as well as departments from all over Ross County.
Fairfield County Sheriff’s office sent two deputies, equipped with a specialized drone that can monitor heat and temperatures to assess the fire; the men are part of the county’s elite “Drone Team.” The deputies joined officers-in-charge at the command post as they planned the best route to attack the inferno.
ODNR had a bulldozer they were using to create a “trench” around the fire to try and stop it from spreading, but unfortunately, the fire jumped the line multiple times and continued to grow in size.
The fire broke out at around 6 p.m. on Wednesday and by 3 a.m. Thursday morning the fire was no where near containment. Conditions became so dangerous that ODNR asked firefighters to pullout and go home; the scene started clearing out at around 3:30 a.m. al
At least one firefighter was hurt, but not severely injured on-the-scene while trying to scale the hill.
Box 65 was on scene for support to offer refreshments and power to those battling the fire. The Guardian was not able to obtain a full list of all the departments who responded for mutual aide, but this publication was told that nearly 50 individuals were on scene.
ODNR returned after daylight Thursday morning with bulldozers to create a trench in hopes of stopping the fire from growing.
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