Published: January 13, 2009 02:38 pm      

Multiple grass fires ignite along highway

Ada — Firefighters from miles around converged on Ada Monday to extinguish several grass fires believed to have been started by a vehicle.

Emergency officials aren’t sure exactly what caused the fires, but they are sure something from a vehicle touched off multiple fires as it drove down the highway.

According to radio traffic, a caller told 911 central dispatch a semi truck losing parts of its cargo was setting the fires as he traveled down the road at about 4:45 p.m. Firefighters from Ada arrived and immediately called for backup to assist with the fires.

Plumes of smoke blocked out the sky and hampered visibility. One Chickasaw Nation Lighthorse police officer who was one of the first to arrive said the scene “looked like the end of the world.”

Firefighters from Pickett, Byng, Fitzhugh, Oil Center and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) answered the call and helped to extinguish the fires.

The fires were all started within minutes of each other. The first started just north of Sandy Creek bridge on the J.A. Richardson Loop.

It quickly spread up a hill and was heading for homes before firefighters contained it. Several more started on both sides of the entrance ramp to State Highway 3.

Several more fires dotted the landscape along SH 3 and onto SH 19. A BIA firefighter was injured when a fire truck reportedly clipped his leg. He was taken to Carl Albert Hospital and received stitches for a laceration.

The fire wasn’t the only danger firefighters faced. As they were extinguishing flames along the shoulder of the highways, rush hour commuters drove by at high rates of speed, narrowly missing them.

Ada Assistant Fire Chief Chris Sutton — in charge of incident command — said drivers are breaking the law when they don't slow down when an emergency vehicle has its emergency lights on.

Troopers from Oklahoma Highway Patrol, Pontotoc County sheriff’s deputies and extra Lighthorse police were called in for traffic control as firefighters battled 10 fires fueled by gusty winds, heavy vegetation and dry conditions.

Pontotoc County Emergency Management Director Chad Letellier said the dry conditions are the reason the county is currently under a burn ban.

The fires were completely extinguished and all firefighters were released within an hour.