Brush Fires?

[susan@htcnet.com]

We talked to someone today that had just returned from the GF and he said that there was a lot of smog in the morning and that you could smell the smoke from the brush fires.

I haven't heard anything about fires this year....anyone else notice that? We are off to the Villas at WL in a week....
Susan in Nebraska

 

[Kath816]

My sister returned from OKW on Saturday. She said it was very smokey and there were ashes on the outdoor furniture. She also said that all of the fountains were not working because they were conserving water due to the fires.

 

[PKK/MJK]

There have been two bad wildfires near WDW lately. The most recent one was somewhere around route 4. I read that part of route 4 between Orlando and Tampa was closed. A friend of ours who works in the Wilderness Lodge e-mailed a few days ago that you frequently could smell the smoke in the lobby. I don't know if they have this fire under control now or not but this cannot be good for people with breathing problems!!

Hi to Kath816. We are neighbors!!!!

Phil and Mary Jo

WDW--82,83,85,87,89,93,95,96, 97,98,99,00,01
DVC/OKW

 

[Galahad]

As of last night (Thursday) the largest fire that is west of WDW was 70% under control. The winds are mostly going away from WDW. The fire doesn't threaten WDW itself, but you could get some smoke. This morning they report that the part of the fire south of I4 (still west of WDW) has flared up again. Be ready for I4 to have some closures and for there to be smoke from time to time. The fire is particularly hard to fight because the swamp is actually on fire rather than just trees. Anyway, since the wind is mostly blowing away from WDW, you should still be OK.

 

[Dennis the WDW Menace]

The fires are located in Polk County which is just west of WDW. The first fire started in late Jan. next to Polk City in a area that is mostly swamp or marsh land. The problem with fires there is that the fire can smolder and let off smoke for months. The second fire was south of the first one and from yeaterdays report on TV they said that it should be totally contained by Monday. Florida has been in a drought condition with little or no rain and everything is very dry. When I drove from Tampa this past week to WDW there was an area about 30 miles from WDW on I-4 where the visability was only 100 yards due to the smoke. I usually stop to walk around at a new rest stop half way inbetween Tampa and WDW, but the smoke was so thick that I kept on going. I could smell the smoke at the parks in the mornings but by the afternoon it had cleared up. There is usually fog in the mornings in that area this time of the year and I'm sure the smoke is contributing to it and this maybe why the smell is so pronounced in the morning. I have problems breathing in areas with alot of cigerette smoke but the smoke smell at WDW did not bother me. I hope that Florida gets some rain soon so that the drought situation clears up.
Have fun at the parks and get a 999,999 on Buzz for me.
Dennis the WDW Menace

 

[njzieglers]

We just returned from the VWL. The smell of the fires was very noticeable, especially in the mornings. The TV news reported that parts of highway 4 were closed down.

 

[Synonymous]

We were at WDW 2/8 to 2/14 and didn't notice anything. There was fog some mornings, which was gone by 10:30. It didn't smell at all like smoke.

Tom

 

[dmadman43]

I'm amazed at this. I can't believe this is still going on. We were at WDW last year, end of April for a Disney cruise and there were fires going on. Had to return 6 weeks later for a conference and there were still fires going on. Is this common in Fla year after year?