Large trees and logs are the only thing left burning inside the box firefighters created to put out the fire on Huntingdon Pike near Canoe Creek State Park, which grew to nearly 300 acres over the weekend, said Deputy Chief Bill VanAtta. Geeseytown Community Fire Company firefighters.

“There’s no harm or danger to anything outside the box,” VanAtta said.

The fire scene was turned over by the volunteer company to the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources early Saturday, VanAtta said.

“Their teams are still monitoring it, working on it and making sure that nothing that’s still burning goes over that line,” VanAtta said.

When the fire started, VanAtta said it was estimated to cover at least two acres that “grew rapidly past five,” and the dry, windy conditions added to the “worst-case scenario for something like this to move up a hillside.”

As the fire grew, VanAtta said residents became alarmed, but the fire moved in the right direction so as not to damage any property. While the fire quickly overwhelmed volunteers, VanAtta said the DCNR was already nearby and responded quickly.

“This one was for our fire company record books,” VanAtta said. “Even those who have been here a long time have never seen one this big.”

DCNR public information officer Larry Bickel, who was released from the scene Sunday after working all day Saturday, said “the burn ban is key here” and that “you can’t burn anything” on state park property. or national.

“It’s fall fire season,” Bickel said. “And we almost never have fires in Pennsylvania. It’s scary.”

Blair County Emergency Management Director Mark Taylor said even if the county does not have a burn ban, no one should burn outdoors.

“Even though it rained a little bit, everyone needs to understand that we didn’t get enough to change anything,” Taylor said.

The rain helped thwart the fire and was a factor in DCNR’s plans to combat it, VanAtta said. On Friday, about 65 DCNR staff members met at the Blair Forest Station to implement a plan for Saturday.

“Everything was under DCNR control,” VanAtta said. “His plan worked perfectly. They took it into account in the weather forecast. “The rain helped cool everything down and extinguish the smaller fire inside the box.”

VanAtta said he is still in the process of determining the exact number of volunteers who fought the fire, but said there were 12 fire departments and two emergency medical services companies on scene, while two fire departments were on standby at the county as backup.

Frankstown Township is under a burn ban until further notice, VanAtta said, adding that “I can’t imagine any municipality” lifting their own burn bans.

“The rain we received has already soaked into the soil and the plants we have have not gone into dormant phase for the winter,” VanAtta said.

The cause of the Huntingdon Pike Fire is still under investigation by the DCNR.

Mirror staff writer Rachel Foor is at 814-946-7458.