Sun City Center, Fla. – President Bush and his governor brother issued an impromptu service announcement Tuesday, reminding Florida residents not to throw out cigarette butts with wildfires blazing across the state.
Officials at Fire Station 28 in this community near Tampa briefed the brothers Bush on the dry, windy conditions that were contributing to about 50 wildfires across the state, including one in the area that had been believed to be started by a spark from a utility line. The Bushes then came outside, where dark smoke from one fire could be seen in the distant sky, to talk to reporters.
“Obviously the people need to be real careful, careful about starting fires, be careful about not throwing used cigarettes out,” the president said. “They need to be mindful that these are dangerous conditions.”
Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said that tossing a cigarette butt is a felony in the state. Later, Bush spokesman Russell Schweiss corrected the governor. Schweiss said that carelessly starting a wildfire with something like a cigarette butt was a misdemeanor, though intentionally starting a fire would be a felony.
Meanwhile, a quarter-inch of rain brought little relief to firefighters Tuesday, and smoke from the blazes was blamed for auto accidents that killed four people.
Three homes and several outdoor structures have been destroyed in the fires, which started April 21, but no homes were in immediate danger Tuesday.
“That rain is going to be dried up – we didn’t get much,” Timber Weller, a specialist with the Florida Division of Forestry, said Tuesday. “By the end of today, most of that water will have evaporated between the sun and the winds.”
Thick black smoke mixed with morning fog has caused dozens of car accidents. Two people died and 19 passengers on a bus were injured in four crashes on Monday.
Parts of Interstate 95 and the Beachline Expressway, which runs from Orlando to the Atlantic coast, will be closed to morning traffic until further notice, officials said.
The fires have charred about 9,000 acres.
