Blown tire believed to spark 120-acre Baker County wildfire amid severe drought conditions

A wildfire that threatened homes and forced evacuations in Baker County is now mostly contained after burning more than 120 acres Wednesday afternoon. The fire started around 1:17 p.m. when a semi-truck lost a tire on I-10 near mile marker 330, according to Baker County Fire Chief Trevor Nelson. Sparks from the truck’s rim ignited brush along the highway. “The dryness is very big part of what happened here today plus the wind that we had,” Nelson said. “We had it between an 18 and 20 mph wind when this fire started.” The blaze grew to more than 120 acres, prompting mandatory evacuations along Noah Davis and Butcher roads. Residents were allowed to return home by Wednesday evening, with no reports of significant damage to any homes.