On Sunday afternoon a little after 2 p.m., did you see a huge billowing cloud of smoke rising up from the trees behind Arista Apartments? My husband and I realized something was amiss when we saw several fire and emergency vehicles arrive on Gin Road shortly after the smoke started to rise into the sky.

According to fire officials, the source of the smoke was a grass fire which burned up to three acres of land encompassing at least six properties on Gin Road. A storage building and one vehicle were destroyed but no other injuries were reported.

Traffic was diverted from Gin Road to Arista Boulevard while crews worked to put out the fire. Eleven agencies and 49 emergency personnel responded to the call. As of this time, officials still do not know what caused the fire.

I'd like to send out a huge "Thank You" to all of the emergency personnel for a short response time, particularly since we all know how hot and dry it has been recently. This was one fire that could easily have gotten out of hand if it weren't for our local heroes.

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