Controlled burn near Willits jumps ditch, chars half-acre of open space

Winds that kicked up Thursday afternoon caused a controlled burn in a ditch on Pitkin County open space to char about a half-acre of land, according to Roaring Fork Fire Rescue officials.

The burn flared up about 2:30 p.m. off Hooks Spur Road on the Parker Ranch west of Willits, Deputy Fire Chief Pete Bradshaw said Thursday afternoon. He said there were no injuries and no structures were threatened.

“They were doing everything right but the wind kind of surprised them,” Bradshaw said.

Four engines and about 16 firefighters responded to the call, and they were on scene until about 4:45 p.m., he said.

He added that even though it is early in the season and we had a lot of snow, the conditions are “just dry enough that we can get fires like this.”