Brush fire triggers mutual aid response in Pine Plains

PINE PLAINS — A brush fire tore through about a half acre of grass at 375 Schultz Hill Road on Friday, June 5.

Fire crews from Pine Plains, Millerton and Milan, New York, responded to the scene. Pine Plains Fire Chief Brian Walsh said crews were dispatched at 1:11 p.m.

The fire was largely doused by 2:15 p.m., with crews continuing to spray water and firefighting foam on the brush to suppress any latent flames. No injuries were reported.

Trevor Slater, who rents the house on the property, said he didn't notice the flames until a neighbor drove by on the road and alerted him and emergency responders.

"I was on the back side of the house and the smoke was all going the other way," Slater said.

Fire crews from Pine Plains, Millerton and Milan, New York, responded to the mutual aid call.Photo by Nathan Miller

Walsh said the exact cause of the fire was unknown at the scene, but he said the blaze was not intentionally set.

Slater said he believed the fire was a reignition from embers. He said his landlords had informed him several days before that they would be burning brush. A similar incident had happened before, Slater said, causing a brush fire that spread to within feet of his home.

"It burned all the way up to the side of my house," Slater said. "That took a couple days to reignite as well."

Walsh confirmed Pine Plains firefighters have responded to blazes at the property before.

"We've been here multiple times," Walsh said.