Thursday afternoon, September 23, 2021, at 12:17 pm, Gaston firefighters were dispatched to a reported grass fire on SW Hartley Road in the rural community of Laurelwood, approximately 3 miles outside of Gaston. Firefighters arrived shortly thereafter to find a fire burning in a field approximately one acre in size. The fire was moving towards an old barn and house, but firefighters were able to quickly extinguish the fire and prevent it from spreading further.
In total, the fire burned about one and a quarter acre of grass and part of a neighboring garden. The fire was started by the property family member smoking out gophers in the field with a propane torch.
The calendar might say Fall, but we are still in fire season and burning is still banned in our area until further notice.