Controlled fire gone wrong leads to total loss at local farm

MARDELA SPRINGS, Md. – From Athol Road, smoke could still be seen coming out of, what once were, two buildings at Calloway Family Farm.

The structures were reduced to rubble, after Deputy Chief State Fire Marshall, Matt Stevens said remnants from a controlled trash fire on Tuesday sparked up on Wednesday.

“They followed all the proper channels to legally have a controlled burn of trash,” said Stevens. “The wind picked up; the controlled burn was the day before the fire, however they realized the day of the fire it was still smoldering.”

Stevens said the response time was swift.

“To have it completely under control, it was in excess of 2 hours, which is not unheard of for a fire of this size,” said Stevens. “There were several departments, from both Maryland and Delaware, that did respond to this.”

He added the roadway prevented the fire from spreading.

“The cut with the road is definitely helpful, because it appears to us, preliminarily, the fire spread on the ground, igniting brush and natural cover on the ground, between the controlled burn to the building,” said Stevens.

With recent drought and windy conditions on Delmarva, Stevens said a controlled fire should always be tended to.

“There should always be somebody watching controlled burns,” said Stevens. “You should have some type of extinguishment source close by, whether that’s your garden hose or a shovel or rake, to put the fire out.”