Helicopter Helps IN Firefighters Contain Large Brush Fire

GARY, IN—First responders were able to limit the spread of a large brush fire Wednesday that forced the evacuation of residents in the immediate area.

Several residences were evacuated around 1:45 p.m. as the fire began spreading in the area of 25th Avenue and Grant Street, Lake County Sheriff Oscar Martinez said.

The fire burned on both sides of Interstate 80 at the north and south sides of the roadway and was moving west, said Indiana State Police Cpl. Eric Rot.

Battling against high winds that fanned the flames and thick smoke, firefighters from several communities worked together at the scene. The Lake County Aviation Unit dropped 34 loads of water that totaled 7,140 gallons.

"You can see the fire all the way from the Kankakee River," Rot said when the fire was burning. "There's a lot of smoke. The fire is coming close, burning up power poles near the interstate."

Rot said troopers were first notified of the fire in the area of Chase Street in Gary, where two westbound lanes of I-80 were shut down near the 8-mile marker.

"We are trying to be as fluid as possible with closures and not shut down the entire interstate," Rot said at the time. "Traffic is flowing through slowly but drivers should expect delays."

Drivers were advised to take alternative routes, and at one point there was a significant westbound traffic jam from the scene of the fire that stretched to Ripley Street in Lake Station.

The Gary Fire Department requested county assistance because the fire was spreading out of control, Martinez said. A sheriff's helicopter arrived at the scene to dump water on the flames.

Fire crews were not able to reach the base of the fire due to the terrain, Martinez said. The fire was first reported by sheriff's police shortly before 1:30 p.m. No injuries were reported.

"I really want to praise the helicopter pilots and crew members for a magnificent job putting themselves in danger, making the water drops and dense smoke and also making the dangerous hover over water to refill the bucket," Martinez said. "It is a great resource not just for the sheriff's department but for all of Northwest Indiana, including Illinois."

Joe Ramirez, an Indiana American water employee, said he was driving north from Merrillville toward Gary when he noticed the smoke in the air.

As he got closer to city limits, he saw I-80/94 consumed by thick, black smoke, bringing traffic to a near complete standstill, he said.

"I figured something blew up. It was an awful lot of smoke," he said. "My immediate thought was it had something to do with a gas line."

Residents in a nearby subdivision said they did not see what may have caused the flames but added they saw multiple fires break out along a nearby field.

Units from the Porter County Sheriff's Office and the Lake County Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency also responded.

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