Firefighters quickly extinguish brush fire near South Hill water tower at 14th and Grand

Firefighters quickly stopped a brush fire that briefly sent smoke into the air around a busy South Hill intersection Thursday afternoon.

A passerby called in the fire about 4:15 p.m., Spokane Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer said. Crews from the downtown Spokane Fire Station No. 1 quickly stopped the fire, which was on city property at the water tower at 14th Avenue and Grand Boulevard.

The fire burned an area of about 25-by-25 feet, Schaeffer said. No structures, including the water tower, were damaged by the fire.

Firefighters were unable to determine a cause.

Schaeffer said fire and medical calls have been up in the last couple of days, likely as result of the heat. They were up about 10% on Thursday.

“It’s been exceedingly busy,” Schaeffer said. “The extreme temperatures on both ends of the spectrum always tends to exacerbate the volume.”