INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Motorists driving along Main Street will likely see smoke from a small, 14-acre prescribed burn taking place Wednesday at the North Sebastian Conservation Area. A much larger burn, 700 acres, was being conducted to the north at St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park in Brevard County.
“The fire is located in Brevard County, but smoke will be drifting south,” St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park officials said. Fellsmere residents reported seeing and smelling smoke along with ash.
The smaller controlled burn in northern Indian River County started at 10 a.m. at the conservation area, located just north of Main Street and west of U.S. 1 in Sebastian, said Wendy Swindell, the county’s assistant director of parks and conservation. The burn is near the equine entrance at 1295 Main Street.
“This entrance and nearby trails will be closed while the burn is taking place and will reopen when the fire is declared out,” conservation officials said.
Firefighters with the Florida Forest Service, in conjunction with Indian River County’s Conservation Land Division, were scorching overgrown scrubs to enhance the habitat for scrub jays (birds).
“Scrub jays are specific about where they nest. The habitat is critical for them in deciding where to nest in the proper location,” Swindell said. “Overgrown (scrub) allows for predators to lurk more easily. The more open the area is, the easier it is for scrub jays to look out for predators.”
The burn in Sebastian was expected to last through the afternoon, Swindell said. Firefighters will extinguish any hot spots about 4 p.m.
The prescribed burn in Brevard County – north of the C-54 canal and west of the powerlines – started about 8:20 a.m. Details on when the larger burn will end were not immediately available.
