A Red-Hot Wedding Night

Back in April of 2015, my girlfriend and I attended a wedding for one of her co-workers in Reading, PA. The wedding was held outside on a golf course, and it was a beautiful spring day in Pennsylvania. The sun was shining with a slight breeze, warm temperatures, and low humidity. All in all, the setting was great for a wedding... among other things.

Once the festivities of the reception wrapped up at 9 o'clock, it was time to head back to my girlfriend's place in nearby Lehighton, PA. As we approached the Blue Mountains, a ridge that forms the eastern edge of the Appalachian Mountains in Pennsylvania, I noticed a light on top of the ridge/mountain. Now, I had been through this stretch of highway many times and never noticed a light up there before. In addition, I had hiked this section of the Appalachian Trail several times and don't recall any structures in the area that would illuminate such a light down to the roadway. My girlfriend and I just kind of looked at each other, said, "That’s weird" and proceeded on our way.

After getting off the highway, we hopped on PA 895 to get back to my girlfriend's house. Driving along the flank of the Blue Mountains, it suddenly became clear... That was not a light that we saw. It was fire!! As we continued down 895, an increasing amount of traffic began to line up from the opposite direction, which prompted my girlfriend to turn to me and say, "There's a lot of people out to look at the fire tonight, honey." When I looked up and saw that the entire mountainside was on fire, I turned back to her and said, "Honey, they aren't coming out to see the fire, they're being evacuated!"

http://www.mcall.com/news/mc-f-brush-fires-0418-20150418-story.html

At this point, we had reached the point where we turn off the main road to go to her house, less than a mile away. There is a bar at this intersection, so we decided to stop and observe the chaos for a bit. I watched as the fire raged up the slopes, cars scurried, and lights from fire crews scattered throughout the hills. I couldn't help but think about the odds of the fire gaining enough momentum to cross the road and make its way to my girlfriend's house, as it burned the pitch pine and scrub oak barrens.

http://www.mcall.com/news/mc-f-brush-fires-0418-20150418-story.html

Luckily, fire crews were able to slow the fire's momentum and get it under control over the next few days. My girlfriend's house was never really threatened despite being about a mile away from the reach of the fire; however, it's safe to say that the fire got our attention. While Pennsylvania isn't known for having substantial forest fires, it just goes to show that, when fuels, weather, and topography align, a fire may not be far behind. 

http://www.mcall.com/news/mc-f-brush-fires-0418-20150418-story.html