PBS, NPR and local perspective for western Mass.

Dozens Of Blazes As Mass. Faces Typical Brush Fire Season

Smoke from a 2016 brush fire on Tekoa Mountain in Montgomery, Mass.
Greg Saulmon

Weather forecasters are warning the current windy, dry conditions can contribute to a heightened risk of outdoor fires. And officials in Massachusetts have been dealing with blazes popping up all over the state.

Over the weekend, 35 to 40 brush fires took place across Massachusetts.

Dave Celino, the chief fire warden for the state's department of conservation and recreation, said it's been a typical fire season so far. He said fire crews are seeing one lingering impact from the recent drought.

"Larger fuels, like six inches in diameter to ten inches in diameter have actually been burning in some of these fires," Celino said. "We don't typically see that in springtime fires because those larger fuels, it takes a while, it takes a month or so for them to usually dry out."

Celino said the fire season usually comes to an end around the start of May, when trees and plants start to "green-up" and become moist.

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Adam joined NEPM as a freelance reporter and fill-in operations assistant during the summer of 2011. For more than 15 years, Adam has had a number stops throughout his broadcast career, including as a news reporter and anchor, sports host and play-by-play announcer as well as a producer and technician.