500 Acre Fire Burning In Marsh Along Lake Okeechobee

$5,000 Reward Offered For Information On Suspicious Fires

MOORE HAVEN, FL. -- The Florida Forest Service and Glades County Fire Rescue are on scene Monday afternoon on a 500 acre wildfire in a marsh west of Lake Okeechobee. FL about 7 miles northwest of Moore Haven.

A Forest Service dozer-plow unit is establishing a containment line on the East side of 78. Florida Highway Patrol is setting up "Smoke on the Highways" signs.

A suspicious fire on Curry Island of 100 acres on Friday was controlled this morning.

The fire was burning away from Hwy 78 between the road and the dike. The fire was on the SE corner of Curry Island in Glades county.

Update: There have been several suspicious ignitions on this 2,700 acres of land located at Curry Island, where Fisheating Creek joins Lake Okeechobee. The westside of Lake Okeechobee water levels recedes exposing dried marsh grass and aquatic vegetation to heat and humidity. Dead, dried out vegetation along the Lake Okeechobee’s edge is vulnerable for ignition on Curry Island.

A series suspicious wildfires have been ignited and the fire service needs your help in the investigation. If you have any information about the cause of these wildfires, please call your local Floirida Forest Service at (863) 462-5160 or 1-800-342-5869.

There is a reward up to $5,000 leading to the arrest.