A vehicle driving off a designated trail in the Ocala National Forest sparked another wildfire, marking the third time a vehicle ignited a fire across the forest floor in just over a month.
The latest incident occurred on Saturday, May 16, at Farles Prairie within the Ocala National Forest.
According to the United States Forest Service, a motorist drove off the designated trail and became stuck in a patch of ground. Heat from the vehicle’s exhaust system subsequently caught the surrounding grass on fire, triggering a wildfire.
A rapid joint response by U.S. Forest Service firefighters and Marion County Fire Rescue managed to contain the blaze quickly, keeping the total footprint to approximately 0.8 acres.
Authorities are warning visitors to be cautious of emergency response vehicles and large fire apparatus traveling along Forest Road 30.
This incident follows two much larger wildfires caused by vehicles in the forest over the past several weeks.
On Saturday, April 25, a vehicle fire along the power lines off Forest Road 5 and Forest Road 14 spread rapidly into the dry vegetation, growing to 5.72 acres before firefighting crews and bulldozers successfully established containment lines.
Prior to that, in early April, an off-road vehicle similarly drove off a designated trail and into a patch of soft ground, where its hot exhaust system ignited the dry grass. That fire grew to 20 acres before local crews could contain it.
Forest officials emphasize that fuels throughout the region remain critically dry and fire danger is extremely high. Visitors are being strictly urged to heed all forest rules regarding road and trail use, and to exercise extreme caution with any potential ignition sources to ensure a safe recreation experience.
Have you noticed extra emergency traffic while traveling through the Ocala National Forest recently? Share your updates in the comments below.