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Wildfire report: Several blazes from Sarasota to Collier; latest along Alico Road in Lee County

A brush fire was burning off Alico Road near the Esplanade Lake Club in South Lee County.
Special to WGCU/Angelina Crawford Frantz
A brush fire was burning off Alico Road near the Esplanade Lake Club in South Lee County.

A number of wildfires in various stages of containment around Southwest Florida continued to burn on Tuesday.

From Sarasota and Manatee counties through Charlotte County, down to Lee County and over to Glades and DeSoto counties, active wildfires were reported.

Newest was a 22-acre fire just north of Florida Gulf Coast University along Alico Road. Fire crews had the blaze about 80 percent contained as of 6:45 p.m. Tuesday.

A fire was reported in Collier County in the Winding Cypress area Tuesday afternoon with no containment or acreage available.

One of the larger burns was in the Myakka State Forest in Sarasota County. Two fires there, one more than 240 acres and the other only 3 acres were at 95 percent contained as of Tuesday afternoon.

North Port Fire Rescue reported that the initial call was received at 2:11 p.m. Monday. There are currently no reports of structures being threatened.

North Port Fire Rescue was augmented by Englewood Fire Control District, Nokomis Fire Department, Sarasota County Emergency Services, North Port Police Department, Air 2, and the Florida Forest Service.

Two other fires were reported in Sarasota County. A 100-acre fire by Orange Hammock Ranch was 90 percent contained and another called the Lightning Field Fire No. 1 was just north of that site.

Just east of those fires were three in DeSoto County. Containment and acreage numbers were not available for the Lightning Field Fires No. 2 and No. 3. A 15-acre blaze, the 4L fire, was not yet contained, the Myakka Unit of the Forest Service reported.

In Glades County, the 275-acre Platt Trap fire was about 50 percent contained and just west of Palmdale a fire was reported but no containment or acreage numbers posted.

An active wildfire was reported Monday in Charlotte County near U.S. 41.
Youn-Joo Park
/
WGCU
An active wildfire was reported Monday in Charlotte County near U.S. 41.

In Charlotte County, the 130-acre North Fort Myers-Charlotte fire was reported east of I-75 and was about 25 percent contained. Two other wildfires were just west of that with the one-acre Granville Road fire 95 percent contained and the Briarwood Road fire reporting no containment or acreage numbers as of 8 p.m.

In northern Lee County, two fires were burning on opposite sides of U.S. 41. The Yellow Fever Preserve fire was about 70 percent contained in four acres and the three-acre Downhill fire was 60 percent contained, according to the Caloosahatchee Unit of the Forest Service.

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