Smoke on the water … and fire in the sky

Boca Grande businessman Pearce Presnell took this photo from his back lanai on Wednesday night, as a wildfire raged just on the other side of Coral Creek, not too far off island. Pearce said the firefighters were camped out there for a long time, hoping the flames wouldn’t reach Placida homes. He said he could feel the heat from the fire, and one could definitely hear the snaps and pops. As of about 11:30 p.m. the fire had burned about 15 acres, and firefighters said it would probably get all the way to the waterline. Floating embers were making it all the way across the creek.