Saturday and Sunday morning were hot, dry and windy
– perfect fire conditions.
Saturday and Sunday morning were hot, dry and windy – perfect fire conditions.
Firefighters controlled a series of 14 grass fires Monday morning after fighting them since before 3 p.m. Sunday.
The largest, north of Morgan Hill in the Coyote Valley, reached 250 acres and threatened four mobile homes and a Calpine electricity plant under construction, according to California Department of Forestry spokeswoman Pam Rhoten.
The other fires were much smaller. The total area burned was 270 acres, CDF reported. They burned grass and light brush.
All 14 fires started along the Union Pacific railroad tracks between South San Jose and Gilroy, according to Rhoten.
Rhoten said a southbound freight train sparked the fires while traveling southbound, and the wind spread them west toward the Santa Cruz foothills.
At the CDF’s request, the UP train stopped south of Morgan Hill.
UP spokesman John Bromley said the train’s crew and a CDF representative inspected the train and “found nothing that would have started any fires.”
Firefighters contained all the blazes Sunday night and finally brought the large blaze under control at about 8 a.m. Monday.
Crews from the CDF, Santa Clara County Fire Department, Gilroy Fire Department and San Jose Fire Department (Morgan Hill) assisted, and East Bay Regional Parks provided a helicopter.
Rhoten said the local area is in particular fire danger at present.
“The fuel is burning right now like it would later in the season,” she said. “We have a concern because it’s starting so early. We had record-setting temperatures in April, and it really did a lot of drying out the grass and brush.”
