30 Acres Burn On Egmont Key, 270-Acre Island Remains Closed: Watch

PINELLAS COUNTY, FL — The Egmont Key National Wildlife Refuge is closed “until further notice” after a fire broke out Sunday afternoon on the island, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. (Watch a video of local agencies battling the fire below.)

The island, which is located at the mouth of Tampa Bay, is southwest of Fort De Soto Beach.

The blaze, which started around 3 p.m., burned 30 to 35 acres of the 270-island, the agency said.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the fire is 80 to 90 percent contained, the agency said. “Yesterday’s rain has helped immensely.”

Fire crews and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service staff remain on the island monitoring the fire. A contingency plan is in place if it becomes active again.

Egmont key was evacuated after the fire started and there are no injuries or damage to structures or equipment reported.

Local agencies that helped with fighting the fire include the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Pinellas County, Manatee County, Hillsborough County, the U.S. Coast Guard, Tierra Verde Fire District, the St. Petersburg Fire Rescue, Eckerd College Search and Rescue, and Great Lakes Dredging.

U.S. Coast Guard crews and Tierra Verde Fire Rescue were the first on the scene to assess the fire Sunday, U.S. Coast Guard Station St. Petersburg wrote in a Facebook post.

The Coast Guard helped establish and enforce safety zones around the island. All vessels near the island were removed from the area as the flames spread to the beach, USCG said.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office’s Aviation Unit responded to the fire with its new Bambi Bucket, which “can relocate water from streams, rivers, or, in this case, the Gulf of Mexico to help extinguish wildfires,” HCSO wrote in a Facebook post.

"Our pilots and tactical flight deputies are trained to handle any scenario, whether that's locating a lost child, tracking a criminal, or in this case, mitigating the damages of a wildfire," Sheriff Chad Chronister said. "Utilizing equipment like the Bambi Bucket means that residents and visitors in Hillsborough County are never far from safety, no matter the emergency."

Watch a video from the sheriff’s office of local agencies fighting the Egmont Key Fire: