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Article Courtesy of
NEWS 5 WKRG
By
Daniel Smithson
Published April 21, 2022
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WATCH VIDEO |
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MILTON — It’s been a week since a prescribed burn got out of hand near Garcon
Point in Milton, burning about 200 acres while narrowly avoiding homes.
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An email dated April
10 obtained by WKRG News 5 shows the Sea Pines neighborhood
homeowners association plans to file damage claims against
the Florida Forest Service’s insurance company.
The Florida Forest Service approved the controlled burn last
Friday, despite windy and dry conditions.
The neighborhood affected is located off Dickerson City Road
in Milton.
The controlled burn, started by the Northwest Florida Water
Management District, quickly got out of control and burned
several wooded lots in the Sea Pines neighborhood. |
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It
also damaged the neighborhood’s front gate and the community boardwalk.
The Florida Department of Agriculture, which oversees the Florida Forest
Service, says it is actively investigating the fire and hopes to put out a
report soon.
The agriculture department has said the fire should not have happened — adding
the burners should have adjusted their plans if weather conditions changed.
Homeowners in the neighborhood are still dumbfounded about why the burn was
approved by the forest service during unfavorable conditions.
“I hope somebody investigates who gave whoever started the fire permission to
start it,” said Robin Hall, who is building a home in the neighborhood with her
husband. “I think they should look into the standards that they have in place
when they decide to allow somebody to burn.”
Hall and her husband stayed behind during the fire, despite being encouraged to
evacuate, to protect their home. Hall said Friday she was aware of the
homeowners association’s plans to file damage claims. She said she believes
whoever is responsible should pay for damages to the neighborhood.
“I think there was damage caused that certainty wasn’t our fault,” Hall said.
“They started the fire. They caused damage to land that the homeowners
association owns, which all of us contribute to, and damaged a lot of our
property. They caused the fire, so they should pay for it.”
The HOA says in the email it’s compiling a list of damages and plans to file a
claim soon.
WKRG News 5 reached out to the HOA president for comment and had not hear back
as of Friday afternoon.
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