Fire closes part of I-75 in south Florida

April 18, 1999
Web posted at: 4:14 p.m. EDT (2014 GMT)

DAVIE, Florida (CNN) -- Firefighters were working Sunday to contain wildfires in the Florida Everglades, where the latest batch of blazes to strike the state have burned an estimated 70,000 acres and shut down parts of Interstate-75.

Officials told CNN Sunday morning that no structures or homes in the area were in danger, but they were concerned about electrical lines.

"Our men are trying to keep the fire away from these power lines," said Dave Stull, operations specialist for the Florida Division of Forestry.

Stull said no evacuations were planned, but a 60-mile stretch of I-75 between Ft. Myers and the outskirts of Miami -- dubbed "Alligator Alley" -- was closed because of heavy smoke.

More rain needed

Also in south Florida, another fire was burning near the Broward and Palm Beach County lines, where it has consumed 500 acres.

In St. Lucie County between Miami and Orlando, 43 homes burned this week. Residents returned to their charred homes Saturday to salvage what they could.

"It's really heartbreaking," said Marry Gitto. "I pray to God I never see anything like this again."

Stull said Saturday's rain in the area was not enough to completely extinguish the fires.

"We need a good penetrating rain" he said. "Yesterday's just wasn't enough."

The Florida Panhandle has not been immune to the dry conditions that make wildfires so dangerous. Firefighters were battling a 240-acre blaze in Walton County that destroyed one home and forced 35 families to evacuate, while a 40-acre fire burned in Santa Rosa County. No evacuations were necessary from that blaze.

Overall, nearly 2,500 fires have hit Florida this year, said Barbara Doran, spokeswoman for the state Emergency Operations Center.

Some fire officials fear conditions may be ripe for a replay of last year's wildfires, which torched 500,000 acres and forced 100,000 people to evacuate.

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