Groups of the nearly 1,000 people evacuated from their homes when a 1,200-acre brush fire neared their neighborhood were allowed back into their homes Monday afternoon, Local6.com has learned.

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IMAGES: Volusia Fire Images
MAP: Map Of Fires

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Homeowners were allowed back into the area through the east entrance, a news release said.

Also, Pioneer Trail was reopened from Glencoe Road to Sugar Mill Road but remained closed west of Sugar Mill Road.

Power was restored to the majority of the residents in the area as well.

Hurricane Debris Causes Problems

Meanwhile, broken trees and debris from recent hurricane seasons hindered firefighters' efforts to extinguish the fire that destroyed three homes, a Volusia County official said Monday.

The fire slowed Monday but had the potential to grow in the afternoon, depending on the wind.

"Currently, we are at a staging or a slowing down period for the fire activity," New Smyrna Beach Deputy Chief Dave McCallister said at a Monday news conference. "For the rest of the afternoon, we expect it will get more active. We don't know what to expect this afternoon, so we are approaching it very cautiously."

In addition to the dry, hot weather, another thing working against firefighters is fallen trees from hurricane seasons in the past few years, Local 6 reporter Jessica Sanchez said.

"The number of snags or broke trees from this last year's hurricane season activity is almost insurmountable, so we can't get apparatus through the woods as we typically would," McCallister said. "We have to wait for Division of Forestry to go in ahead of us creating fire lines."

Officials with the Division of Forestry said there was a perimeter around the blaze.

"If the weather works with us, we should be able to maintain it," McCallister said. "If we get a strong wind or changes we don't anticipate in the wind or weather, it could work against us as well."

154 Firefighters Involved

Officials said about 154 firefighters were at the scene Monday trying to keep the flames contained.

New Smyrna Beach city official Shannon Lewis said firefighters are watching the wind conditions Monday.

"Winds are projected to come out of the southwest this morning, so we are going to be setting up most of personnel in the northeastern quadrant," New Smyrna Beach city official Frank Roberts said. "The wind is scheduled to turn out of the east as the day goes on and pick up in terms of its wind speed. At that time, we will move the point of attack to the area that is just west of where the EOC is to keep that fire from spreading into the timber."

"The fire did lay down last evening as expected due to the humidity," Lewis said.

There were no immediate plans to extend the evacuation zones Monday.

It was also confirmed by officials that three homes were destroyed by fire Sunday night and one New Smyrna Beach firefighter suffered minor injuries.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.