North Shore Fire Warnings, Outdoor Burning Bans Amid Heat, Drought

TOPSFIELD, MA — Smoke is in the stagnant air across the North Shore this week as brush fires continue amid the searing temperatures and severe drought.

The latest fire occurred in Topsfield on Wednesday where fire crews said a model rocket mishap led to two acres of burning grass at Pye Brook Park. Crews responded to the quickly spreading fire at about 12:45 on Wednesday.

Crews from Topsfield Fire and Boxford Fire quickly surrounded the area and prevented the spread to several outbuildings, dugouts, and the adjacent woods. The lack of a pressurized water system in that area of the town forced crews to use alternative methods of getting water to extinguish the blaze.

Topsfield said there were no injuries but the conditions caused the approximate two-acre burn.

"With the recent severe drought, residents and visitors of Topsfield are cautioned as to the dangerous fire conditions that exist," Topsfield fire said. "Activities like using model rocketry, smoking, and cooking/campfires may seem benign but are immeasurably more likely to cause a fire given the dry conditions Essex County as a whole is experiencing currently."

Salem Police Chief Alan Dionne on Thursday issued an order prohibiting all outside burning within city limits, including campground sites at Winter Island. Charcoal grills may be used for cooking only, and must be monitored while in use and thoroughly extinguished after use.

The Topsfield fire follows a large brush fire that smoldered for three days in Gloucester and a fire in the yard waste area of the Marblehead Transfer Station that reached three alarms and grew so intense that windows broke at nearby Tiago Way.

"Right now the city is being blanketed with smoke from a couple of major brush fires in the area," the Beverly Fire Department said this week. "Although we do not currently have any fires in Beverly, this highlights the importance of being very careful with such dry conditions.

"Do your part and keep things that are hot away from things that burn. Fire Prevention at its simplest."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)