THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 23, 1995 TAG: 9503230562
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY LANE DEGREGORY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ROANOKE ISLAND LENGTH: Medium: 65 lines
Harry Niser was burning some tree limbs in a metal barrel in his back yard Wednesday afternoon when he took a brief break to go inside.
When he stepped outside a few minutes later, flames had swallowed acres of marsh grass. Fire was creeping up the trunks of 50-foot pines. Black, billowing smoke blanketed the sky.
``The whole world was on fire,'' Niser said from beside his house, as flames sliced a sooty path through the thick underbrush. ``I had a hose right by the barrel. But I couldn't keep up with the flames. Once I came back out, it just spread so fast it got out of hand.''
Niser lives in a one-story home on the east side of N.C. Route 345 between Skyco and Wanchese. More than 1,000 acres of open marsh surround his property. Niser's house and neighboring structures were not harmed.
No one was hurt.
``I can't believe it didn't get my home. That's the first thing I thought would go,'' Niser said. ``I'm very thankful that was saved.''
Firefighters received word of the marsh fire about 1:45 p.m. Volunteers and paid personnel from Kill Devil Hills, Roanoke Island, Manns Harbor, Colington and Nags Head battled the blaze until dark. An airplane from the N.C. Forestry Service aided in the effort from above.
But without central water or fire hydrants, it was a difficult, dangerous task to get enough water to fight the flames. Firefighters took shifts carrying the long hoses from pumper trucks hundreds of yards into the smoldering marsh. Some coughed and wheezed from the thick smoke, visible from Kill Devil Hills to the north and west to Manns Harbor.
``This is not uncommon,'' Dare County Fire Marshal Doug Remaley said. ``Marsh fires happen around here all the time.''
Nonetheless, the size of the blaze and difficulty of fighting it prompted Remaley to term Wednesday's Roanoke Island fire ``Brush Fest '95.''
No one could determine how many acres were singed - at least hundreds, some estimated. Remaley said Niser needed a burn permit if he was going to torch anything in his back yard. Niser said he had never heard of such an ordinance.
No one would comment on whether charges will be filed.
``I was burning the stuff within 100 yards of my house, just like you're supposed to,'' Niser said. ``I had the stuff contained in a metal barrel so it wouldn't spread. I'd been watching it all morning.
``This is the third time in 10 years that this marsh has caught fire like this. It just burns so quick. Once it gets going, there's really not much you can do.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]
DREW C. WILSON
Staff
Worn out from fighting a brush fire in a marsh near Wanchese, Craig
Burgess of the Manns Harbor Volunteer Fire Department takes a
breather. Without central water or fire hydrants, fighting the
flames was a difficult, dangerous task. Firefighters took shifts
carrying the long hoses from pumper trucks into the smoldering
marsh.
KEYWORDS: FIRE by CNB