Some Medford residents near the Bear Creek Greenway are becoming increasingly alarmed after three more fires sparked in the brush behind their homes.
Residents in this neighborhood woke up to the sound of emergency vehicles at 1:30 this morning.
Their initial thought was violence, but they soon learned there was yet another handful of fires.
“So we’ve lived here about ten years and we have the same people camping down at the end of the road here,” resident Laura Hoover said.
Hoover says she has seen a lot more activity by the Bear Creek Greenway near her home.
But it’s not necessarily the type of people that concerns Hoover the most… it’s the fires.
Three last night and one earlier this week in the same location near Spencer and Mayette.
“That really concerns me because it doesn’t take much for that to creep on down to our house,” Hoover said.
While police called Thursday’s fires suspicious, Hoover believes the people in the area are starting campfires to cook dinner and keep warm on cool nights.
Medford Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Ron Nelson says while the fires last night were small, if they spread it could easily threaten neighbors.
“They could easily become a fire victim by smoke ventilation or the fire burning across where they’re sleeping at,” Nelson said.
While Hoover is worried about her neighborhoods safety, she also wants to see something done for the people living along the Greenway.
“Giving them the necessary treatment that they need and getting them the necessary housing that they need and that would cut down on the fires,” Hoover said.
Nelson says the dry brush and grass is most likely the cause of these fires continuously getting out of control.
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