Firefighters work to contain blazes throughout Florida

MIAMI - Firefighters and the National Guard worked Saturday trying to control several fires that burned thousands of acres across Florida, while more than 20 smaller blazes smoldered throughout the state.

None of the wildfires presented a serious or immediate threat to any homes or property and fire crews had several nearly contained, said Eric Ford, an official with the Florida Division of Forestry.

Since the first of the year, 3,365 fires have burned nearly 120,000 acres throughout Florida.

A wildfire that burned Saturday in the Bundy Lake area near Jacksonville consumed 125 acres. Some homes were evacuated and a few were slightly singed, Ford said. None, however, suffered serious structural damage.

A power line and some transformers were also damaged in the Bundy Lake blaze, which started as an unauthorized brush burn-off.

''It's 90 percent contained as of right now,'' said Ford.

Crews contained fires in Washington, Alachua, Putnam, Okeechobee, Glades and Martin counties, but kept on battling several larger fires around the state.

In Lake County, where 13 fires burned a 4,300-acre area west of Orlando, crews only had 30 percent of the blaze under control.

In Orange County, firefighters worked to contain fires of 1,200 acres and 960 acres.

In Arizona, forest officials said the 11,300-acre ''Pumpkin'' fire northeast of Williams was 70 percent contained Saturday. While they expect is to continue burning within control lines for weeks, leaders were releasing more crews for work elsewhere.

On the Net:

Florida Division of Forestry: http://flame.fl-dof.com