'Ongoing Wildfires' Close Breakheart Reservation For Third Day

WAKEFIELD, MA — The Breakheart Reservation in Saugus and Wakefield closed for the third time in three days on Thursday afternoon as fires again flared up in the area.

Igniting on Tuesday night, the fires initially burned between 12 and 20 acres according to estimates from the Department of Conservation and Recreation on Wednesday morning. That number was up to 25 acres roughly 24 hours later on Thursday morning.

The reservation closed on Tuesday night. It reopened on Wednesday morning before closing again in the afternoon. The DCR warned of "intermittent closures" over the coming days after Wednesday's closure.

Though the area reopened on Thursday morning, it had indeed closed once again according to an announcement from the DCR at 4 p.m. when officials reported wildfires causing heavy smoke within the reservation.

While a cause for these fires remained to be determined, fire officials told WCVB on Tuesday night that they were considering the five separate fires burning in the Breakheart Reservation “suspicious.”

Experts have echoed warnings about fire conditions through this and recent weeks as drought conditions lead to particularly parched forest and brush environments that have been quick to ignite and reignite this summer.

As crews battle flames in the Breakheart Reservation, firefighters further to the north were also handling a large-scale brush fire in Rockport on Thursday morning. The National Guard has been activated to aid in the response there, according to reports from WCVB.

The Lynn Woods Reservation in Lynn also closed on Thursday due to a series of fires there.

Recent fires in the area have sent smoke drifting over nearby communities, with residents at times reporting the smell of smoke several miles away from the Breakheart Reservation.

Many had hoped that a rare summer nor'easter this week would bring badly needed rain to the region. That rain largely didn't come, though, leaving close to 40% of the state under "extreme drought" conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. The extreme drought area includes the Breakheart Reservation.

Related:

Breakheart Reservation Fires Burned 12-20 Acres: DCR

Firefighters Battle Brush Fires In Saugus Breakheart Reservation

Malden Fire Department Notes Uptick In Brush Fires