Brush fire closes US 1 in Brevard County

Authorities work to contain brush fires in Brevard, Orange counties

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – US 1 has reopened after a brush fire in south Brevard County closed a portion of the highway due to poor visibility, according to Florida Highway Patrol.

Officials said the 10-15 acre brush fire ignited near Malabar Road and has resulted in the closing of US-1 between Malabar Road and Marie Street.

Multiple brush fires also sparked in Orange County on Wednesday.

Officials said one fire was reported in Avalon Park that prompted the evacuation of 5 buildings from an apartment complex as the flames crept closer. Orange County Fire Rescue said this fire was contained Wednesday evening and they will investigate the cause of this fire Thursday morning.

Another was reported at 4:30 p.m. near Wewahootee Road and John Wycliffe Boulevard in a wooded area. It's not clear how big the fire is.

Another fire in Apopka scorched about 1.5 acres, ignited near Ella J. Gilmore Street, not far from County Road 429 and State Road 414.

The fire was burning about 75 feet from a home, but no evacuations have been ordered, fire officials said.

Ten Marion County homes were destroyed over the weekend in a brush fire, and several blazes have ignited in Central Florida since then.

Meanwhile, officials say traffic is being diverted from Interstate 95 in central Florida because of a brush fire in Indian River County.

Florida Forest Services reports that the blaze was first noticed around 1:15 p.m. Wednesday, sending smoke across the interstate at mile marker 142. It has since grown to about 50 acres.

Southbound traffic was being diverted at State Road 60 in Indian River County, and northbound motorists are being directed to exit at Orange Avenue in St. Lucie County.

The National Weather Service has issued several fire weather warnings and wind advisories for the region, with gusts on Wednesday ranging from 20 to 40 mph.

Read more about the alerts on the ClickOrlando.com weather page.

Watch Local 6 News and stay with ClickOrlando.com for more on this story.


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