Clouds of smoke could be seen billowing from an Aurora nature reserve as a grass fire broke out Wednesday evening.
Central York Fire Services were called at about 5 p.m. to reports of smoke in the area of Scrivener Drive and William Graham Drive, near the David Tomlinson Nature Reserve.
"They were initially dispatched for smoke in the area and then while they were on route, we started receiving more calls and somebody had spotted that it was a grass fire," Deputy Fire Chief Dan Waters said. "So we increased our response because it's a little bit of a challenging area to get to. So we approached it from a couple of different fronts."
Six crews, totalling 25 personnel in all were sent to the scene, and after applying water were able to fully extinguish the fire.
Waters said the cause of the fire has yet to be determined, but said it is not uncommon to see brush fires at this time of year.
"As soon as the snow goes, the grass is still pretty dry, right from last year's growth," he added. "So it's not uncommon at this time of year."
In a post to Facebook at about 7 p.m., Mayor Tom Mrakas said he had spoken with Central York Fire Services and that the fire had been extinguished, and thanked crews for "their swift and professional response."
Residents around town began posting on social media around 5 p.m. about large amounts of smoke that could be seen in the skies above Aurora.
Michelle Porter De Ridder said she had "ashes falling on my car north of Mulock and Bayview."
Waters warned residents against any unauthorized burning.
"Be aware that things are really dry right now," he said. "Make sure the fully extinguished smoking materials.
