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Courtney Weatherburne reporting
The embers spewing above resembled those from an erupted volcano. This blaze wasn't anywhere near as ominous.

The owner of La Pasadita bar, which is adjacent the empty lot says he is grateful the fire didn't spread to his business.

Winston Dawson Jr., Owner
"I have lived here over 20 years and it is routine every year that place catches fire. Yesterday about 5:00 I saw smoke coming from the corner of the land so I made it my business to call the fire department which they responded very quickly. There was only two guys and they tried but the truck ran out of water. They came back about 3 times. The breeze picked up very quickly and it was impossible to contain the fire but they came all last night like 8:00, 9:00 fighting that fire, it was very drastic for them because the breeze was very strong and it was impossible for those guys to contain that fire."

Courtney Weatherburne:
"But fortunately, you guys were not affected at all?"

Winston Dawson Jr., Owner
"No no no the breeze was blowing in another direction, we were not affected none at all."

Courtney Weatherburne:
"But let's say the wind was blowing in another direction you guys and others could have been affected."

Winston Dawson Jr., Owner
"Definitely, it was the height of a light post, the fire was very high."

Earl Trapp, Mayor, San Igncaio and Santa Elena
"Well I spoke to the owner of the property just beside La Pasadita Bar and he just told me that the land after his property that the people were doing land clearing and it is alleged that they lit the property and that is where the fire spread and it went to the..I saw a clip of the fire just now. It is basically the property of the monastery the cohune palms were burning, that was the monastery."

Although the residents in the area were spared, this blaze highlights the danger of careless bush burning and the issue of unattended overgrown lots.

Winston Dawson Jr., Owner
"The plots of land around here are owned by people and they put no interest in cleaning it and when the time comes in the dry season it all catches fire and it is really out of control. I suppose the Mayor or the government need to address this matter."

The Mayor says he is aware of this concern and will so what he can to address it.

Earl Trapp, Mayor, San Igncaio and Santa Elena
"What we can do is since we have a building unit that are on their feet all day observing the buildings within the municipalities, we can add to their duties to observe and be more observant and see where we have the empty lots with overgrown bushes and if we cant locate someone that owns the property and advise them to clean it then if it is near some other houses that if a fire should jump across then maybe the council can take it into our hands and probably just do a clearing especially like a fire path."

While Mayor Trapp has made that commitment, it is up to land owners and the community to practice responsible burning and protect their property.

Orin Smith, Station Officer, National Fire Service
"To the land owners do not burn on high wind conditions, cut the area to be burnt, clear and pile in smaller more manageable piles, have buckets or drums of water on hand with sufficient assistance and control the burning, extinguish any remaining fires after burning is complete."

Today the Department of the Environment sent out a warning about the burning of garbage. They warn that burning garbage emits toxic substances into the air and the public breathes it in, unknowingly. "The DOE is calling on all persons to cease from burning garbage, whether in towns, cities or villages, in order to maintain air quality for all residents."