Five units from the Gilroy Fire Department and two rigs from South Santa Clara County Fire responded to a three-acre grass fire that started shortly before 1 p.m. near the intersection of Miller Avenue and San Justo Court in southwest Gilroy, according to GFD Division Chief Phil King.
“It was called in as a fast-moving grassfire,” King said. “Those can be a decent threat.”
The initial call came in at 12:56 p.m. and the first crew was on the scene by 1:04 p.m., King said. The fire was completely under control by 1:20 p.m. While the exact cause of the fire remains under investigation, a man using heavy equipment to cut down the grass was one of the first people to call in and report the blaze, King added.
Due to the nature of fast-moving grass fires, aircraft resources were on stand-by but not called in because the fire was contained so quickly. GFD Fire Chief Alan Anderson says the “fairly moderate weather” played a big part in keeping the fire under control.
The grass fire in the fenced-in wildlife preserve area was stopped about 50 feet short of a line of newer homes – part of the Mesa Ridge Housing Development – across the street on San Justo Court, west of Santa Teresa Boulevard.
“It was going pretty good,” said Kirt Vojvoda, who was on the second floor of his Caliente Way residence when he looked out his window and saw smoke in the field. “I looked up and instantly thought the field was on fire.”
Vojvoda, who later rode his bicycle to the corner of the field, described the fire as having a “pretty good column of black, grayish smoke.”
Resident Jennifer Langdon was on the other side of the field on Mesa Road closer to Santa Teresa when she saw the fire developing. “The flames made a real significant push,” described Langdon, noting she arrived shortly before the first fire engine. “It grew pretty fast.”
However, King said what was initially called in as “fast-moving” was later deemed a “slower-moving” fire. King added that the first phase for firefighters arriving on the scene is to size-up the situation, identify any threats and also resources that are immediately available. The crew then works on “putting out” or “diverting” the fire. Once it is controlled, several members of the crew do what is called “mop-up” and douse any areas that are still smoldering.
“It went really well,” King said.
Vojvoda, talking with several neighbors near an open gate to the field as the firefighters worked on the smoldering areas, said it was a “quick response” by the Gilroy Fire Department, which did “an excellent job.”
A couple of mothers with young children stood near their vehicles on Mesa Road, waiting to be allowed to drive back into the neighborhood.
