53-acre fire in Modesto’s airport district likely started in homeless encampment
A 53-acre vegetation fire that injured one person in Modesto’s airport district Monday afternoon likely began as a cooking fire lighted in a homeless encampment along the Tuolumne River, a fire official said.
The burned man, who was injured badly enough to be airlifted to a burn center, was likely in the encampment area, Modesto Fire Department Deputy Chief Darin Jesberg said.
Firefighters from across Stanislaus County responded to the fire, at the intersection of Mariposa and Finch roads in south Modesto, shortly after 2:30 p.m. Early reports were that it was 10 to 15 acres but spreading, driven by wind, authorities said at 4 p.m.
A drone was used to survey the area. No structures were threatened, Jesberg said.
A battalion chief’s incident summary released Tuesday morning said crews stopped the forward progression of the fire in about an hour. The report said the blaze “was eventually stopped behind Giltons property (Gilton Resource Recovery and the river.”
Departments helping fight the blaze included Modesto, Ceres, Denair, Woodland and Hughson, Modesto Fire Chief Alan Ernst said at the incident command center set up at the scene. He said the response included 11 engine companies and five chief officers, though it looked like more equipment was arriving.
Ernst said the fire was burning between Finch Road to the north and the Tuolumne River to the south. The objective, he said, was to keep it from jumping the river. Units were on the south side of the river, watching for embers. Other units were to the east, to hold off the fire from homes and other structures.
This story was originally published May 2, 2022 at 4:39 PM.
