Boston smoke smell coming from brush fires in Salem, Massachusetts
By Penny Kmitt
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SALEM, Massachusetts (WBZ) — Brush fires in Salem and other parts of northeastern Massachusetts continued to burn Monday, with smoke being detected as far south as Boston.
In Salem, about 130 acres have burned in the brush fires, which started Saturday. The fires have been spreading as tourists converge on Salem for Halloween events downtown this week.
The fires have not had any impact on the festivities, but the drifting smoke from the North Shore could be smelled miles away.
The National Weather Service in Boston asked followers on social media in southern New England Monday morning, “Waking up to the smell of smoke this morning, SNE?”
“A surface inversion is keeping this smoke trapped near the ground, but the smoke should “mix out” later this morning,” the agency said.
The National Weather Service warned that the combination of “recent dry weather and very dry ground will continue to make conditions favorable for wildfire development today.”
“During the night & early this morning, fire companies in our area have responded to several “odor of smoke”calls due to the smoke from the brush fires in the North Shore area, Salem, Saugus, Lynn, Peabody, etc.,” the Cambridge Fire Department tweeted Monday morning.
Cambridge and Boston are about 20 miles south of Salem.
Salem Fire Chief Alan Dionne said the flames have been very difficult to put out because the terrain between Salem, Peabody and Lynn is very secluded and rocky.
Several local and state agencies are now using helicopter water drops and drones to identify the heavy burn areas and put out flames.
“It’s a lot of acreage and getting to it is the hardest part,” Dionne told WBZ-TV Sunday. “It’s just one of those fires that’s going to smolder for a long time. And when it smolders overnight and then it gets fresh air and a breeze in the morning and especially if there’s a wind change, then it could flare up again.”
Dionne said the bulk of what they’re going to see Monday from the brush fires will be “deep into the woods.”
No one has been hurt and there are no reports of any homes or business being damaged in the fires, which are also an issue in Middleton, which is about 10 miles northwest of Salem.
The Middleton Fire department said about 50 acres of land has been burned there.
“Both incidents will require lengthy, heavily committed, multi agency operations to be placed under under control,” Northeast Massachusetts Emergency Alerts said in a statement on Facebook.
Brush fires were reported as far south as Rehoboth on Sunday. A firefighter there was brought to the hospital because of the heat, but is expected to be okay, according to WPRI-TV.
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