Brush fires raged across the state on Monday and inched dangerously close to homes and popular trails.
The dry and windy conditions were a recipe for disaster and forced fire crews to keep a close eye on the flames.
One fire was off Route 15 in Wallingford and it was a scene drivers could not ignore. On Tuesday, Linear Trail in Wallingford remains closed as a precaution after a large brush fire because hot spots remain.
NBC Connecticut viewers snapped pictures of the blaze that sparked just yards away from the busy Quinnipiac River Linear Trail and baseball fields full of kids.
“I saw the smoke like 50 feet in the air. I thought. 'Oh my gosh, there must be a huge fire,” Ray Samford said.
The fire started around 5 p.m. and quickly charred 25 acres.
“They were about 20- to 25-feet high,” Samford described.
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He said he moved closer to get a better view and said the fire was more intense than he expected.
“I was maybe 20 feet away from it and the heat was getting pretty bad,” Samford said.
As firefighters got a handle on that brush fire, crews 30 miles away in Bristol had another brush fire to battle in the Hoppers area near Birge Pond.
"Just unusual for Bristol. (I) haven't seen anything like this ever actually,” Victor Jacquette said.
Heavy smoke spread across a hillside within minutes, as flames torched trees and inched dangerously close to homes.
“I was taking care of my grandkids and they were getting nervous. They thought the house was going to burn,” Linda Blazejowski said.
As soon as she saw the fire headed their way, they got out immediately.
“It was pretty scary,” Blazejowski said.
On Monday night, her place along with the others were still standing. Although the fire was under control, no one in the area is in the clear because conditions are still bone dry.
“We need some rain. We definitely need to get some rain,” Wallingford Fire Chief Peter Strubele said.
Fire crews expect more of the same during the next few days, so until it rains they want everyone to be very careful, Strubele said.
That means no open burning or throwing cigarettes out car windows, because any little spark can cause big problems.
The fire danger for Tuesday is very high and a red flag warning is in effect for the entire state until 8 p.m.
