Local firefighters have been stretched thin in recent days, as crews from Stockton, Stevens Point, Plover, Hull, Amherst, Rudolph, and Dewey were all called to this scene at 6434 Old Hwy. 18 in Stockton on April 13. (Metro Wire photo)

Video: Another heavy day for local firefighters

April 13, 2023April 17, 2023

By Brandi Makuski

Local police and fire crews have just put a cap on a second hectic day of fire calls.

Sheriff Mike Lukas said there were 21 wildland fires on April 12, burning 2,900 acres across the county. Calls included a three-acre wildland fire in Plover, where crews battled a blaze for just over three hours in record heat with a high temperature of 87 degrees.

At press, fire call tallies for April 13 were not immediately available, but this story will be updated when they are.

Several Portage Co. firefighters also assembled for a strike team on Thursday, joining departments from across the Northwoods to assist crews on the scene of a massive forest fire at Fort McCoy. As of mid-afternoon on Thursday, over 3,000 acres there had been destroyed.

At about 3 p.m., crews from Stockton, Stevens Point, Plover, Hull, Amherst, Rudolph, and Dewey were all called to a fire at 6434 Old Hwy. 18 in Stockton.

Stockton Fire Chief Jeremy Spencer said the fire may have been electrical in nature but it was “very quickly contained to the exterior of the home.” Crews also removed some some of the siding of the home to ensure it was fully extinguished. There were no injuries, he added.

Plover and DNR crews were called to Willow and Foremost in the village of Plover at about 6:15 p.m. when a caller reported a grassland fire along a section of CN train tracks that was spreading into the trees behind St. Bronislava Catholic Church, 3200 Plover Rd.

Deputy EMS Chief Anthony Luchini from the Plover Fire Department said CN closed a section of track so crews could extinguish flames on north and south sides of the rail track. The cause of the fire was still under investigation but no one was injured, he said.

“We’re busy; it’s definitely been an interesting day,” Luchini said of the frequency of fire calls.

Shortly after 8 p.m., PFD also responded to a home on Jelinski Circle, where a small fire was ignited after someone began shooting off fireworks in their front yard.

Elsewhere in the county, Stevens Point firefighters were called to numerous burning complaints across the city, including residences on Fremont St. and Frontenac Ave., and a small fire at Morton Park on Michigan Ave., reportedly ignited by a child.

This story will be updated