Weird grass fire in the rain in Midhurst

Fire crews responded to a peculiar grass fire in the rain that they didn't even try to extinguish.

Springwater Fire received the call shortly after 6 p.m. that a tree branch had fallen on hydro wires on St. Vincent Street in Midhurst on Monday.

"When crews arrive, the wire had already broken and was arcing on the ground," said Springwater's Deputy Chief Jeff French.

Like a well-lit campfire, the small fire stayed alight in the rain as the crews and neighbours watched.

A peculiar grass fire lit up St. Vincent Street in Midhurst on Monday. (Supplied by Springwater Fire's Deputy Chief Jeff French)

French used the three fire trucks at the scene to close off St. Vincent Street until Hydro One arrived.

According to the deputy fire chief, once hydro crews isolated and turned off the power, the fire went out.

Power to the area was restored at approximately 8:30 p.m.

French said extinguishing an electrical fire in the rain is a tricky thing.

"To answer your question on how do you put out an electrical grass fire in the rain? The simple answer is you can't, rain or shine, all we can do is block off the area to keep the public safe, keep it contained until hydro (crews) arrives on scene to disconnect power."

There are pump settings and nozzle patterns on the fire truck's hose that controls the water stream crews spray to keep the fire from spreading, and it didn't hurt that it was raining, which kept the surrounding grass from catching fire, French explained.

The deputy fire chief reminded people to not approach dislocated wires – keep at least one hydro pole distance away – and call 911.