Man Cited for Allegedly Causing Erin Lane Brush Fire

A man has been cited for allegedly starting a large brush fire near Springtown Hill Road in Lower Saucon Township Saturday that drew dozens of firefighters and emergency personnel from companies in Northampton and Lehigh counties to extinguish it.

In a news release issued Monday, township police said Miguel Gonazalez, of 1720 Erin Lane, “was burning waste in a 55 gallon steel drum when embers lit surrounding grass/brush.”

“The fire then began to spread rapidly,” they said.

Police said the fire ultimately burned across nearly five grass-covered and wooded acres.

Springtown Hill Road had to be temporarily closed between Hill Drive and Orchards Road, and at one point a request went out to close the grist mill parking lot on Walnut Street in Hellertown, so tanker trucks could refill from the pond there.

The smoke cloud from the blaze was visible from parts of Hellertown and surrounding areas, and extinguishing it required a response that lasted hours.

Police said Gonzalez was cited for an open burning nuisance under the township’s burning ordinance.

There have been a number of brush fires in Lower Saucon Township in April, as dry, windy conditions have prevailed.

In spite of the National Weather Service’s issuance Saturday of a Red Flag Warning–indicating that conditions for brush fires to develop were ideal–Northampton County fire officials did not enact a burning ban.