A brush fire in Hawthorne has spread more than 100 acres as of late afternoon Monday. No injuries or structural damages have been reported.
The fire, located near Lochloosa Lake, was reported around 1:30 p.m., according to Ludie Bond, a spokesperson for the Florida Forest Service. Alachua County Fire Rescue has not ordered evacuations, but it has contacted residents within a 3-mile radius of the fire.
No structures have been impacted by the fire, but a major roadway is affected.
The Alachua County Sheriff's Office has shut down County Road 325 between County Road 346 and Southeast 152nd Avenue, according to the Waccasassa Forestry Center’s Facebook page.
As of 2:55 p.m., the fire has grown to more than 100 acres, per the Waccasassa Forestry Center’s Facebook page. Bond said she anticipates the fire affecting “more than several hundred acres.”
The cause of the fire remains unknown, though Bond said recent weather may have had an impact.
Lightning strikes throughout North Central Florida on Saturday caused the Florida Forest Service to anticipate potential fires, Bond said.
The fire is one of more than 1,800 reported wildfires in Florida this year, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Alachua County has seen a rare uptick amid the drought. A fire in the county’s Balu Forest spread as far as 400 acres April 15, and one on North Main Street prompted neighborhood evacuations less than a week later.
The area of Monday’s fire has been impacted by wildfires before. In late March, a wildfire was reported roughly two to three miles south of the current Lochloosa Lake fire, per Florida Forest Service. The earlier wildfire is now 90% contained.
Alachua County Fire Rescue is working to contain the Lochloosa Lake fire, using helicopters, an air attack aircraft and dozers. Despite these efforts, the fire has reached more than 100 acres, with its impact spreading beyond Hawthorne.
The smoke and other debris from the fire could spread to west Gainesville due to the direction of wind speed, Bond said.
“It’s going over Gainesville out towards the interstate,” she said. “The smoke from this fire can have the possibility to impact areas away from this fire.”
Alachua County has advised residents to use caution when driving throughout Gainesville, including near Archer Road and Paynes Prairie, due to rising smoke levels.
Follow Olivia Lofaso on her X @OLofaso77652.
