New article: Florida Man Burning Books Starts 700 Acre Wildfire read more at here http://www.spinonews.com/index.php/us2/item/3108-florida-man-burning-books-starts-700-acre-wildfire

What started as a man’s illegal attempt to burn a box of his old paperbacks spun out of control when it turned into a wildfire on Thursday, consuming around 700 acres of land, including 20 structures and forest. The fire, in Bryceville, has so far displace about 150 people.

“It’s burning everything. He can’t get the hose to reach,” said the wife of the man who called up 911 to report the fire. “Oh my God. It’s burning down dead grass toward other people.”

Firefighters say that they managed to contain up to 75 percent of the fire this Friday, but they had no timetable for when evacuated residents will be able to return home. They say that the fire damaged the county’s infrastructure, including power lines.

“We’re asking the public to be patient with us,” Fire Battalion Chief Mike Eddins said to the media. “Once we get those preliminary damage assessments completed, then we’ll try to make a determination of when we can let people back into their homes.”

Authorities say that the man who accidentally started the wildfire was burning paperback books at his home, violating a statute banning the burning of household waste. He is expected to pay a “hefty” fine for the damages and the cost of fighting the fire.

“This was not malicious intent,” Annaleasa Winter of the Florida Forest Service said. “They feel absolutely devastated, very remorseful.”

A neighbor who was forced to evacuate her home says that she held nothing against the man for his actions.

“I don’t think hating that person is going to help anything. He thought he could burn some stuff, and it got out of hand,” said Jessica Fouraker. “The best I can do is to pray for him and his family and the journey they have from there.”

Chief Eddins called it a “blessing” that schools in Nassau County were on break and many residents were already out of the area even before the fire started, so it wasn’t as bad as it could have been.