Last week’s fire at Seduction Point was started from a campfire, said United States Forest Service manager Tristan Fluharty.
Haines Volunteer Fire Department and Forest Service employees fought the blaze on Wednesday, Aug. 2 at the point south of Haines. The fire was declared extinguished on Thursday morning.
Fluharty said about a tenth of an acre burned. The blaze took a crew of 10 and a helicopter to put it out.
Fisherman Nygel Duffy-Webb reported the fire after he saw smoke and flames Tuesday evening from his boat.
“Something caught my attention. It seemed like a bit more than a campfire,” Duffy-Webb said. “I saw two sets of open flames.” Duffy-Webb said he told dispatch about the fire when he got into town after midnight.
Fire chief Brian Clay said if the department had not caught the fire when they did, “it would have been really ugly.”
“The temperature, humidity and wind were all just right for the fire to spread,” said firefighter Tim Holm.
Fluharty offered tips to prevent forest fires.
“If people are out camping, they need to make sure to build campfires in bare dirt, not in needle or leaf-cast or grass,” Fluharty said.
When finished, he said, campers should use water or dirt to put out the fire until it is no longer hot.
The department issued a burn ban for the borough last week, effective until conditions improve, Clay said.