Evening star., 1947-04-08
s Homes Burned
By Forest Fires
In Maryland
l3 Fomilies Suffer;
Fighters Alert for
New Outbreaks

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and volunteers, wearied by two days
OF field and forest blazes, today con-
tinued on the alert for new OUT
breaks.
The latest series OF fires burned
out an estimated 5000 acres in
Maryland, the most of the damage
occurring In an area between WASH
ington and Baltimore. Six dwellings
at Texas, Baltimore County, were
burned yesterday leaving 13 families
homeless.
Montgomery and Prince Georges
County fire companies were kept
on the run all day yesterday. Near
by Virginia areas were not hit as
hard although more than 100 forest.
brush and grass fires laid waste to
thousands of acres and caused un.
estimated damage in the Old Domin-
ion, the Associated Press reported.
so Alarms Received.
The Prince Georges County Fire
Board at Hyattsville said about so
alarms were received yesterday. The
Silver Spring Fire Board said It
handled 20 calls.
Prince Georges sent three COM
panies this morning to combat a
field fire on Riggs road near White
Oak.
The last of five major fires In
Maryland was extinguished last
night after more than $500 airborne
and ground firefighters, including
1000 cavalrymen and military police
from Fort Meade battled fires which
broke out around 10 am.
Fire companies from most town
and communities in Anne Arundel,
Howard and Prince Georges Coun-
ties, two companies from Washing
ton and some from Baltimore fought
flames centering in the Jessups area.
Chief John H. OLexy, Jessups
fireman. said he believed most OF
the fires originated from sparks
from locomotives. Others, however,
thought they started from careless
cigarette smokers.
Fort Meade Safe.
The scorched area almost sur
rounded Fort Meade and at one
point flames crossed into an outly-
ing wooded section of the post. The
military installation itself was not
endangered, however.
I. j. Dalstrom, superintendent Of
supply for the District Fire Depart
ment, toured the Maryland fire
area throughout the day.
Bringing the flames under control
was made difficult by shifting
clouds of smoke caused by high
winds. This made 1t hard to deter
mine exactly where new outbreaks
were occurring, firemen said. An
other difficulty was the scarcity Of
water.
Chief OLexey said that even
though most emergency calls were
being put through. the telephone
strike delayed many calls for fire.
men.
Two Youths Injured.
In the fire at Texas, near Balti-
more, in which six dwellings were
destroyed two youths suffered frac-
lures when they jumped from the
second floor of one of the burning
buildings. Shortly after their leap
a wall of the structure collapsed,
f1remen reported.
Col. Guy v. Miller, director of in
formation, I'd Army Headquarters,
said that, in addition to 2 square
miles burned out in the Jessups
area, 2 square miles were burned In
the Odenton area and ! square mile
was burned near Laurel.
An estimated 80 fires burned over
Baltimore County, where Pennsyl-
vania Railroad traffic was delayed
a half hour as firemen strung hose
lines across the Harrisburg -Balti-
more tracks.
Directing operations Of 1000 SOL
diers from the air, Fire Chief
Charles Eckman of Fort Meade used
a small plane to spot new outbreaks.
Other Outbreaks Listed.
other Maryland communities
where fires occurred included May
field, Stony Run, Linthicum, Wood
lawn, Hanover, Severn, Gambrills,
Muirkirk, Glen Arden, Ridgeway,
Avondale, Glen Burnie, Elkridge,
Monteville and Cumberland.
While most of the Virginia fires
we're fairly small and were under
control last night, several still were
out of control early this morning.
Flames were doing most harm In
Amherst, Rockingham and Spottsyl-
vania Counties, State Forester
George w. Dean said.
In Rockingham County, near Lin
wood, one of the fires was moving
toward Big Run and the Shenan-
doah National Park. A 100-acre
woods fire was reported in Fauquier
County, there were several in Lou
doun County, 10 in Fairfax and two
in Prince William County.
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