Brush fires light up the Borderland

EL PASO, Texas-- Fire departments in the Borderland have fought several brush fires lately, reporting an increase in these types of calls.

"During the March month, we do start to see an increase in brush fires due to the weather," said Daniel Ames, Horizon Fire Department Assistant Chief. "We start getting high severe winds, so that kind of helps spread wildfires a little bit faster."

For 2022, the Horizon Fire Department has already responded to 20 calls concerning brush fires, which already accounts for a fourth of 2021 calls.

On a different part of the region, the Sunland Park Fire Department has responded to five brush fires; One in January, three in February and last week they registered the first one for March.

On March 4, the Sunland Park Fire Department reported Station 2 received a call about a fire at Westside Drive. A large brush fire fueled by high winds was threatening homes. There were no injuries reported.

Even in Sunland Park where open fires are legal, Sunland Park fire Chief, Daniel Medrano, says the fire department does not allow any burning if it's windy.

"We don't want an innocent prescribed vegetation burn to turn into a major incident."