FAIRVIEW — Virginia Department of Forestry officials are blaming arson for a wildfire that burned several hundred acres of grass and woodland Sunday evening in a remote area of Scott County.
VDOF Regional Forester William Miller said the 450-acre fire was intentionally set at about 6 p.m. Sunday in a field off Beech Grove Road (Route 601) in the Fairview section of Scott County.
Miller said the fire is the largest to occur so far this year in Southwest Virginia.
Arson was also the cause of a wildfire that burned 95 acres — including 35 acres of forest — Sunday evening in Lee County’s Flag Pond community.
“The causes of both fires are considered incendiary,” Miller said. “We suspect they were both hot set; someone just hopped out of a vehicle, set them along the side of the road and drove off.”
The fires were set about 5 miles apart in fields of plume grass, which Miller said is highly flammable.
“Historically, that area down there has burned because of that grass,” Miller said. “It burns very intensely. It’s a flash burning, so once it starts it burns really quick and it’s too hot to put out. You usually have to wait until it gets in the woods and the flame intensity dies back down so you can get it under control.”
At one point, the Fairview fire threatened 18 structures, including several houses, Miller said.
None of those structures was damaged.
Despite the intensity of the blaze, Miller said the VDOF and Duffield Volunteer Fire Department were able to bring the Fairview blaze under control after fighting it for nearly 12 hours.
Miller said members of the Blackwater VFD also assisted forestry crews throughout the night with the Lee County wildfire.
Although both fires occurred in steep terrain, Miller said bulldozers were used to help dig fire lines to help bring the flames under control and keep them from spreading.
Miller said the fires were among 10 that occurred over the weekend and burned more than 600 acres in Lee, Scott, Wise and Washington counties, which are part of the VDOF’s Abingdon District.
Included in those numbers was a 15-acre blaze just north of Gate City that crews responded to Friday afternoon.
Warm, dry weather played a roll in the fires, Miller said, whether they were intentionally set or not.
“Anytime it’s warm and windy like this, the fuels dry out really quick,” Miller said. “Even if we get a significant amount of rain, a warm, windy day will make it ready to burn again.”
Burning in Virginia is prohibited prior to 4 p.m. until April 30.
Miller said anyone with information on either arson-related wildfire can contact the Virginia Department of Forestry at (276) 676-5488, the Scott County Sheriff’s Office at (276) 386-7679 ext. 4 or the Lee County Sheriff’s Office at (276) 346-7753.