HOPE — A neighbor to 169 Bull Hill Road, in Hope, happened to see commotion rolling upwards along the one-lane rutted dirt road. He walked to the hilltop property, turned around, grabbed his excavator, and headed back towards the blueberry fields. A Hope fire truck engaged in pumping water had sunk deep into the dense mud lane; another vehicle got stuck as well, according to Hope Fire Chief Clarence Keller.

A couple hundred yards away and beyond sight, firefighters used the pumped water to extinguish hot spots on a 3.5 acre parcel after straw that was spread about on the field turned to fire. The only wheels to pass through the thicket of trees were attached to a utility truck and an all-terrain vehicle.

As with any fire anywhere, the Thursday, April 13 blaze in Hope, which started minutes before noon, came with a few challenges, including a brisk wind out of the northwest, which served to fan the flames. Yet, in the end, each challenge was shrugged off.

“That’s what we do,” said Keller. “We have to deal with the hand we’re dealt with as stuff happens.”

Those challenges, as well as tougher road conditions at the top of the hill than at the entrance with Route 105, would not have changed the outcome of the situation.

Arriving on scene, Keller encountered a field burn that had already crept into the bordering vegetation. In front of him, a fir tree burned, creating flames visible 25 feet above the treeline, and leaving Keller to assume more wildlands may be burning behind that tree. A brook in the woods would eventually help deter the spread, but Keller didn’t know that at first. With at least the one tree on fire, Keller requested a full mutual aid response, bringing Camden and Lincolnville firefighters to the scene after the initial 11:53 a.m. call to 911.

After awhile on scene, Camden units were reassigned to the Hope Fire Station for station coverage.

The last remaining units cleared the scene at 3:19 p.m. As last on scene, Hope firefighters then returned to their station, where they remained until after 5 p.m., cleaning the mud from their hoses and returning all of their equipment back to a state of readiness for the next call.

Keller expects that this Spring will be a busy one for the fire department.

A burn permit was not issued for the Bull Hill Road property, and it was left to the forestry warden to investigate whether the initial spark was ignited by nature.

North East Mobile Health Services staged in the area with an ambulance as a precaution.