WURTSBORO – The beautiful weather this past weekend was marred — literally — by a large forest fire that burned a significant portion of the Shawangunk Ridge near the Village of Wurtsboro in the Town of Mamakating. The fire started as a small blaze in the early afternoon on Saturday. But high winds quickly whipped the flames, turning it into a major fire that burned through approximately 300 acres of timber. The blaze kicked up so quickly, in fact, that firefighters at one point were forced to beat a hasty retreat.

More than 30 fire companies from three different counties responded to the blaze, which is the second major fire on the ridge in as many years.

Bill Lothrop, a Deputy Fire Coordinator for Sullivan County who happens to live in Wurtsboro, said that the weather conditions were a significant factor. "The wind picked up and took the fire and ran with it," Lothrop was quoted as saying. "This [was] not a brush fire; this [was] a major forest fire."

At approximately 1:15 p.m. on Saturday, Wurtsboro Airport Manager Daniel Depew noticed what appeared to be a small brush fire at the foot of the ridge, just north of VFW Road. He then radioed flight instructor Warren Cramer, who was airborne at the time, to ask him what he saw. Cramer radioed back that it was indeed a fire and recommended that Depew alert authorities — who were on the scene within 15 minutes, according to Depew.

However, given the fire's somewhat remote location, it was difficult for those on the ground to observe the exact spot at which to attack the blaze. This prompted Lothrop to ask Depew if it would be possible to get him into the air in order to coordinate firefighting activities from a good vantage point.

"Billy [Lothrop] called and said, 'Dan, I need some help because we're still having a hard time determining exactly where [the fire] is,'" Depew said.

Depew had Jason Marion, one of the pilots associated with the airport, took Lothrop up. Within a few minutes the pair was airborne, giving Lothrop a birds-eye perch from which to direct the crews under his command.

Firefighters then worked to control the blaze, which at one point came very close — within 100-or-so feet — to threatening a row of homes along Shawanga Lodge Road. However, the wind shifted direction, sparing these residents from what might have turned into a major disaster.

Firefighters were then called off the blaze around sunset, as it became too risky to allow fire crews onto the steep terrain.

What followed was a spectacular light show, with the blaze zigzagging from the base of the ridge all the way to the crest. Dozens of motorists who had stopped to watch the fire were lined up on both sides of the road along Route 209 near the airport. On the other side of the ridge, along Shawanga Lodge Road, the air was filled with acrid smoke, as the prevailing winds pushed smoke into the hollows on the east side of the ridge.

First Assistant Chief of Wurtsboro's Fire Department Charles Corrigan said that the crews were able to save the homes along the ridge as a result of the hard work of hundreds of firefighters from the surrounding area, some coming from as far away as Wallkill.

"It was a valiant effort between crews from three different counties," Corrigan says.

Corrigan also thanked the efforts of the various firefighters' auxiliaries. He says that these groups did an excellent job keeping the firefighters well primed with food and water during the fight.

The next morning, crews went back to fighting the blaze, with a state police helicopter capable of doing water drops helping to douse the flames along the unpopulated side of the ridge. By Sunday afternoon, fire crews had the blaze under control.

This time of year is particularly dry, according to experts, and there is usually a large buildup of fuel — dead leaves and such— as well as little-to-no leaf canopy to help retard fire. This results in a situation in which fire can spread very easily. In fact, the National Weather Service had issued a fire bulletin for the area earlier in the week. In recent years there has been a great deal of new thinking when it comes to forest fires. At a lecture in Ellenville two months ago regarding last year's fire along Route 44/55, New York State Forest Ranger Rob Dawson — one of the coordinators for the firefighting over the weekend — stated that, in some instances, it actually makes sense to let the forest burn, in order to cut down on the amount of fuel present in the undergrowth; and that there are several species of pine trees that cannot survive without being exposed to fire, as high temperatures are required for the pinecones to open up and deposit their seeds.

Dawson stated that there were prime conditions for fire this past weekend. There was plenty of fuel on the ground, the relative humidity was extremely low (less than 20 percent), and there were high winds. The National Weather Service warning that was issued last week called the fire situation "extreme," the highest-level of alert.

As of press time, investigators were still working to ascertain the exact cause of the fire. They hope to have concrete information as to the cause sometime in the next few weeks.

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