HARDWICK ― Fire departments from Central Massachusetts towns battled multiple brush fires across about five miles of railroad track in Hardwick on April 29, officials said.
The fires, which started before 11 a.m. and reached four alarms, ignited on a windy, dry day when an elevated risk of fire had been declared by the National Weather Service.
Hardwick Fire Chief Josh Pease said the fires had mostly been knocked down by about 1:30 p.m., and that officials at this point believe they were likely sparked by a train.
The fires – about four or five in number – all started near the tracks, officials said. No homes were severely damaged, though Hardwick police Lt. Kevin Landine said he and several other first responders had to put out a fire that started in a shed to prevent it from burning a home.
“That’s what you do in a small town,” said Landine, whose uniform was soiled from the effort.
Police direct traffic along Lower Road in Hardwick as crews fight brush fires below.
Multiple area towns responded to the fires, including Oakham and Paxton, while police shut down a part of Barre Road for use as a staging area. First responders set up near a general store off Barre Road, with pizzas and water available for firefighters.
Smoke could be seen rising along the hills of the bucolic town, where cows from Clover Hill Farm on Chagnon Road grazed as firefighters battled flames below.
Pease said the fires burned at multiple locations across about five miles, including near Lower Road, in between Chagnon and Barre roads, at Barre Road at Prouty Road, and near the town’s recycling center in the village of Wheelwright.
Pease estimated about six to eight acres total are or were burning, but said the fires were mostly contained by early afternoon.
“Right now, we’re in the mop-up phase,” he said.
Zach Lloyd, who lives not far from the tracks on River Run Road, said he called in one of the fires, which he said began not long after a train came through.
Lloyd said the train tracks near his house are well-maintained, noting he’s recently seen workers chopping trees.
Pease said spot fires from trains are pretty common, happening “relatively frequently” the last couple of years.
“Everything’s just so dry right now, and it’s so windy,” he said, adding that low humidity also plays a role.
Worcester County remains in a mild drought, according to the state’s Executive Office of Energy & Environmental Affairs, mostly resulting from an extremely dry stretch in summer and fall of 2024.
Pease said people should avoid outside burning when elevated fire risk warnings are in effect.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Crews battle 4-alarm brush fires along railroad tracks in Hardwick