Philipsburg:--- Traffic backed up on Bush Road and A.T. Illidge Road on Saturday evening as firefighters tried to access a bush fire in the hills of Saunders and A.T. Illidge Road. Firefighter Silvanico Pauletta told SMN News that someone shot a flare in the hills causing a bush fire which he said spread very quickly.
Some 14 firemen worked up until 2am Sunday morning to bring the fire under control. Pauletta said that two fire trucks were used to fight the fire. He explained that the firemen had to divert their attention at one point to secure three homes and a cabin when the fire got very close to those homes. Pauletta said the firemen managed to contain the fire and no homes were damaged. A third fire truck positioned itself on A.T. Illidge Road causing a diversion of traffic. Pauletta said that they had to dispatch a fire truck to A.T. Illidge road to monitor the fire in order to ensure that the bush fire did not spread and or damage homes on the A.T. Illidge Road hillside. The firefighter said that even though they brought the fire under control early Sunday morning the area was still being monitored on Sunday throughout the day because of the dry weather.
It is not clear if the Police Department is conducting an investigation to determine who shot the flare and what was the reason for the person's actions.
