This morning I stopped to capture some snapshots of the area burned in yesterday’s brush fire. These shots were taken from the sidewalk along the North side of Palmer Blvd in Sarasota. I included my daughter in one of the shots just to help give some perspective.

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]

Obviously a lot of credit and gratitude are owed to the Sarasota County Fire Department for getting on the scene right away and containing the fire. I was immediately concerned about the Big Cat Habitat, where a number of tigers, some lions and even an elephant or two are kept just 1/10 of a mile east of the blazing area. Thankfully, the most the animals should have suffered was some minor smoke inhalation and perhaps some irritation associated with the ash in the air.

Smoke billows skyward as flames crawl across low-lying areas near the “celery fields” in Sarasota County.

I just returned from taking a peek at what’s happening just off of Palmer Boulevard near Fruitville Road just East of I-75. Several units have responded from the Sarasota County Fire Department and at least one helicopter is on the scene attempting to douse the flames.

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]