Owners of businesses surrounded by dry vegetation concerned about wildfire risk
Chatting with his regulars, shop owner Manny Odedra said that if local firefighters had not arrived so quickly, the fire might have spread up the mountain behind the shop and/or destroyed the shop.
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Manny Odedra, the owner of the Quick Shop on Route 9W in the Town of Newburgh, showed News 12 the remnants of a tiny fire next to the store: a charred half a pine tree.
He said someone came into the shop Thursday afternoon, stole a water and then lit the tree on fire.
Chatting with his regulars, he said that if local firefighters had not arrived so quickly, the fire might have spread up the mountain behind the shop and/or destroyed the shop.
""Here, we have more chances [of wildfires] because of no rain," he said. "Fires are a big problem It's dry. Everything is dry. You have to be very careful. Think about that if a fire goes on."
The National Weather Service has issued a fire weather warning for the Hudson Valley because of low humidity and almost zero rain since early September.
The dry trees, leaves and grass could fuel a multi-acre wildfire.
The owner of the nearby Our Family Deli has also become more concerned about fire risk since the deli is surrounded by dead, dry vegetation.
"I don't know what you can do to prevent that though," owner Brian Yi said. "When you think about it, it makes you frustrated, but I don't know."
Officials with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation said property owners can minimize risk by cutting grass and trees short and removing dead vegetation.
Local fire experts told News 12, though, that if a home or business is surrounded by acres of dry vegetation, not much can be done to protect it other than a significant rainfall.
