Brush fire causes siding on house and nearby trash cans to melt in North Andover

NORTH ANDOVER – A wildfire in North Andover caused trash cans near a home to melt Saturday.

Crews attempted to contain the fire before it spread to the nearby home on Forest Street. The heat of the fire also melted the siding of the house.

Wildfires throughout Massachusetts

Wildfires have been burning across Massachusetts for three weeks now, as firefighters struggle to control the blazes due to wind and dry conditions.

There were multiple wildfires across the state on Saturday. One fire in Haverhill left firefighters working all afternoon to extinguish a blaze in a wooded area in a neighborhood near Merrimack River Park.

In another area, Lynn woods remained partially closed after a fire jumped the fireline and began spreading toward Dungeon Rock.

The state is currently experiencing a drought and no rain is expected for the next week. In some areas drastic demands are being made of residents reduce their water consumption due to the dry conditions.

Preventing a bushfire in Waltham

Firefighters tried to prevent a house fire on Milner Street in Waltham from becoming a bushfire. Witnesses say they heard a loud explosion around 3pm on Saturday and were concerned about the dry conditions at the time.

“Of course, first and foremost we were concerned about our neighbors. We hoped that no one was home in the house that was on fire and that our neighbors are friends, so they immediately came home from where they were. My My husband said that there was a small fire behind the house, that was quite concerning,” said Mary Sullivan Low.

Preventing forest fires

The state Department of Fire is asking residents to avoid activities that could start a wildfire.

“The dry, sunny, windy weather is great for recreation, but it also means that any outdoor fire will spread quickly and become very difficult to contain,” said State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine.

Fire officials are asking people to avoid the following activities:

• Refrain from cooking and heating in the open air, including unattended campfires.
• Do not burn leaves. (Open burning is prohibited until January)
• Be careful with lawn mowers, leaf blowers and other electrical equipment because motors can get hot enough to ignite dry leaves.
• Use an ashtray or sand to extinguish smoking materials such as cigarettes.
• Place fireplace and wood-burning stove ashes in a metal tin, cover with water and cover with a tight-fitting lid before discarding.

If you see flames or smoke in your area, call 911.