The Upper Thames River Conservation Authority and fire fighters from Perth East Fire Department are back at Ellice Swamp near Milverton Wednesday trying to put out a fire.
In a release, the conservation authority says staff worked until dark Tuesday evening and today will be joined by Perth East fire crews who will apply water to fire. A series of hoses, tanks and pumps will move water from tanker trucks at the road to the fire 4,000 ft away.
The fire was spotted over the weekend.
In a video posted to YouTube, Land Management Technician Brandon Williamson says in a peat bog like the Ellice Swamp it could have been smoldering for some time before it was noticed. Williamson explains workers have been trying to control the fire by digging a trench with shovels and axes.
"If we can get down below the duff layer, below the peat layer to the organic soil and cut off some of the roots that are adjoining the trench to the burn side then we can eliminate the fuel from it hopping the burnt area to the area that's not burned," Williamson says.
The conservation authority says Tuesday's winds created problems for crews but the fire is now held to under one acre.
