Fire on the Marsh
On Wednesday evening, a fire broke out on the Point Pelee Marsh, burning some areas of very dense cattails. After originally being listed as “natural”, the cause has now been changed to “undetermined.” There are lots of rumours flying around as to the cause but regardless, this could end up being great for the marsh! The newly opened up area should encourage new growth and hopefully attract some interesting wildlife.
I didn’t witness the fire up close but on Wednesday night, I could see an unusual glow in the sky off in the direction of Pelee all the way from the north end of Amherstburg. The fire burned throughout the night and into mid-morning with flames reported as being 20 feet high. The Leamington Fire Department and Park staff let the fire burn out in the marsh but did an amazing job of protecting the boardwalk. Heavy rains in the morning, helped douse the flames.
This morning, I headed out bright and early to get a glimpse of the aftermath. It’s hard to get the full perspective from photos to the size of the burn. The air smell of charred cattails – surprisingly not an unpleasant smell. In one stretch, you can tell that the flames kissed the boardwalk but thankfully it didn’t catch. The regrowth will be easy to witness as it’s going to be visible right along the boardwalk.
It will be interesting to see if the park is able to determine what started the blaze.
