Brush fire, car crash keep Fire District 3 crews busy

A brush fire and an errant spare tire put Island County Fire District 3 emergency personnel on the road this past weekend.

A brush fire and an errant spare tire put Island County Fire District 3 emergency personnel on the road this past weekend.

The fire, along Kirkwood Lane off Lakeside Drive in the Goss Lake area, was reported by neighbors shortly before 8 p.m. Friday, said Deputy Chief Jon Beck.

Beck said a resident had been burning brush legally in the area earlier in the day, and that a nearby cedar log apparently had begun smoldering after the resident had left. A brushy area about 10 feet by 20 feet also caught fire, he said.

“There was a pretty good column of smoke coming off of it,” Beck said.

He said firefighters worked for about an hour to extinguish the blaze.

On Saturday afternoon shortly after 5 p.m., a Subaru station wagon with three occupants ended up in the brush along Highway 525 when its driver swerved to avoid a spare tire that had broken loose from the vehicle in front of it, Beck said.

He said the incident occurred in the southbound lane of the highway near Campbell Road, when the spare tire secured beneath a large Ford SUV broke free and dropped to the pavement.

No injuries were reported, and the Subaru sustained minor damage, Beck said.

The fire and the tire were highlights of a busy weekend that included 22 medical calls from Friday night to Monday morning, 11 on Mother’s Day alone, Beck said.

“We normally get about four or five calls a day,” he said.