Small Fire Snuffed Out at Hamilton's Dunphy Park

Novato firefighters bodyslammed another small vegetation fire on Friday — the third in less than a week, all in southern Novato — and made an appeal to residents to take extra precautions as heat and wind continue to rise.

"Heightened awareness is the key," Battalion Chief Gerald McCarthy said after crews held a grass fire to a quarter-acre at in Hamilton.

The fire was reported at 12:56 p.m. on the west side of the baseball diamond right next to a pump station, McCarthy said. The engine from the Hamilton fire station was the first to arrive, and four others quickly followed, he said.

Firefighters ran lines around both sides of the fire and met in the back, leading to a declaration of containment at 1:18 p.m. The fire was unusual because it transitioned from a light grass fire into a brush fire with greater flame length, McCarthy said.

There was no damage to structures or park playground equipment, and nobody was injured, McCarthy said.

There were in Ignacio and in Hamilton.

"The normal season tuneup has taken place, and what we really need now is the public's help," he said. "Fire season not only has started for us, but it starts for the homeowners as well."

McCarthy said people need to be mindful when cooking outdoor to make sure hot ashes are put into cold metal containers. Outdoor fire pits should be located away from possible fuel sources and wind gusts, and smokers have to be especially aware when discarding cigarettes, he said.

"We live in a beautiful area with beautiful hills and valleys," he said, "and 200 years ago wildfires would go through and the vegetation would renew. But now those hills and valleys are scattered with homes and (human) lives."