Fire Chief Paul Fillebrown said a Shirley firefighter, whom he could not identify, suffered a dislocated shoulder. The firefighter was taken by Groton EMS to Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer for treatment.
The cause of the blaze remains under investigation, according to the chief.
Fillebrown said flames were traveling at a good pace when the first Ayer fire trucks arrived at the scene after a telephone call about 7:13 a.m., reporting smoke in the area. The chief said the blaze burned about three acres near the power lines bounded by Douglas Drive and Rosewood Avenue.
The wind whipped flames through the underbrush and scrub pines before a wind change blew it back into a swampy area, which helped firefighters bring the blaze under control. Firefighters cleared the scene at 9:50 a.m., after a lot of wetting down, Fillebrown said.
Shirley and Groton firefighters assisted Ayer at the fire while the Devens Fire Department covered the Central Fire Station. Shirley's tanker truck shuttled water to the blaze, Fillebrown said, as there are no hydrants in the area.
