Open burn ban in Buncombe after dry spell, fiery weekend

WLOS — BUNCOMBE COUNTY, N.C. -- Firefighters and forest rangers spent the day putting out hot spots on the 85-acre Shope Creek Road brushfire.

"With the dry, windy conditions anything can happen, and it happens very fast," said Thad Lewis, Riceville fire chief.

Bob Ross, who works at RadioShack on Patton Avenue, found that out first hand. Ross says he was in the back parking lot when he heard crackling sounds.

"It was right at the bottom, right where that log is getting started," Ross said.

It was a small brush fire behind the Gypsy Queen restaurant in West Asheville, spreading quickly.

Within a minute it had gone from one little spark to about 15 to 20 feet. Ross says he grabbed two fire extinguishers and called 911.

If Ross had not been in the right place at the right time, "it would've been pretty bad." Ross said. "There was a car parked right there, the bumper had started to melt. There were four or five other cars right there."

While this brush fire was put out quickly, Buncombe County's fire marshal wants to keep others from starting.

He says the open burn ban includes all outdoor burning, including firecrackers and using fire pits.

"If you are using a fire pit, something like that, anything the embers can get out of, you stand a high risk of having an unwanted fire," said Buncombe County fire MarshalTerry Gentry.