Villagers and other area residents expressed concern Tuesday afternoon after seeing a very large cloud of smoke northwest of Wildwood.
Some motorists even pulled off on State Road 44 to take photos of the huge plume of smoke, which was being generated by an agricultural pasture burn of about 275 acres. The controlled burn started Tuesday around 10 a.m. and is scheduled to be completed shortly before 7 p.m.
Area residents might also see or smell smoke from other fires as well, as a check of the Florida Forest Service’s interactive map shows dozens of active permitted fires stretching from Gainesville to Lakeland, with a large cluster of them located just northwest of Ocala near Anthony.
To learn about fires burning across the Sunshine State, visit the Florida Forest Service’s website at freshfromflorida.com.
