Fire scorches 24K acres, blanketing region in smoke and disrupting traffic to Florida Keys
Crews have battled the blaze, "dubbed the 344 Fire," in southeast Miami-Dade County for eight days, with state agencies urging residents and visitors to avoid the U.S. 1 area due to dangerous smoke.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Firefighters gained some ground Thursday in the blaze that has scorched thousands of acres between Miami and the Florida Keys, blanketing the region in smoke and periodically closing roads going into the Keys.
Crews have battled the blaze, "dubbed the 344 Fire," in southeast Miami-Dade County for eight days, with state agencies urging residents and visitors to avoid the U.S. 1 area due to smoke and heavy emergency response. As of 5 p.m. local time on Thursday, the fire has charred about 24,000 acres and was 30% contained, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson and the Florida Forest Service said in a released statement.
Michelle Danielson, a senior forester with the Florida Forest Service, said it's unclear how the fire started.
Road closure updates: Access to Florida Keys limited as '344 Fire' burns
The Florida Forest Service added that "multiple engines, tractors, bulldozers, three helicopters, and two fixed-wing airplanes" were on the scene, in addition to North and Central Florida strike teams, as well as Miami-Dade Fire Rescue and the U.S. Forest Service. The National Weather Service warned that "relative humidity values, with northerly winds 10 to 15 mph, will lead to elevated fire weather concerns" in South Florida Friday.
Road closures have gnarled traffic between the Miami-Dade metropolitan area and the Keys for several days, fraying the patience of people caught up in the traffic backups. The massive blaze is burning in an undeveloped area between U.S. 1 and Card Sound Road, part of which is in a conservation area in the Southeastern Everglades.
"Although the fire is not near any commercial or residential areas, we urge our community to stay informed about any possible road closures and stay safe," Miami-Dade Fire Rescue posted on X.
The 18-mile stretch of U.S. 1, the main road, closed again just before lunch on Thursday and reopened later in the day, according to the Monroe County Sheriff's Department. The smaller Card Sound Road remains closed until further notice.
The Miami-Dade County Emergency Management advised motorists to expect delays and stay alert for changing conditions. "If you must drive through the area, keep windows up and use recirculation mode if air quality is poor," the department added.
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Red flag warnings were issued for South Florida on Thursday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST. The warning extended from Palm Beach County south to the tip of Florida and as far west as the cities of Palmdale and Clewiston.
"With most of South Florida already under drought conditions, this will lead to critical fire weather concerns Thursday afternoon. Any fires that develop could spread rapidly. Outdoor burning is NOT recommended," the National Weather Service Miami posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
It's a busy time of year for the region, with spring break vacationers and sports fans traveling to watch the Miami Open tennis tournament and NASCAR races at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The City of Homestead and Homestead Police Department said the events at Homestead Miami Speedway will proceed as scheduled.
Travelers need to be prepared for periodic closures and plan accordingly for potential lengthy stops and heavy delays over the next few days, local agencies said. The smoke concerns prompted a health advisory for those with respiratory conditions.
"Limit outdoor exposure if you have respiratory conditions," Homestead officials and authorities warned in a news release. "Keep windows closed & A/C on recirculate when driving through smoke."
Power outages have also occurred when fires were burning near the lines, and resulted in periodic outages in the region. Officials said Thursday that crews were working on repairs and that minor tower damage may affect service.
'The drought is not going away anytime soon'
National Weather Service meteorologist Chris Fisher said the lack of rain and dry conditions have pushed "things over into the critical fire concerns."
"Considering how dry we look for the foreseeable future, the drought is not going away anytime soon," Fisher warned.
Palm Beach County is now considered to be in a severe drought by the U.S. Drought Monitor, according to a report released on Thursday. Just 2.88 inches of rain has been measured at Palm Beach International Airport since Jan. 1. That's a deficit of 5.12 inches and marks this year as the 14th driest on record so far, according to the Southeast Regional Climate Center.
Other South Florida cities experiencing low rainfall this year include Fort Lauderdale (-4.6 inches), Miami (-3.5 inches), Naples (-2.5 inches) and Fort Myers (-2.9 inches). About 41% of the state is experiencing moderate or extreme drought, with much of Central Florida considered "abnormally dry" by the drought monitor.
Dinah Voyles Pulver covers climate change and the environment for Paste BN. She's been writing about wildfires since the Florida firestorm of 1998. Reach her at dpulver@usatoday.com or @dinahvp on Bluesky or X.
Contributing: Charles Ventura, Paste BN; Cheryl McCloud, Paste BN Network-Florida