VIDEO: When first responders arrived at the Compound Fire in Palm Bay on Wednesday, Assistant Fire Chief John Ringleb said there were 10 different columns of smoke throughout the area. “So, before we put a drop of water on any of these fires, they were multiplying, and every minute that goes unchecked with these fires, they continue to grow,” Ringleb said. A Brevard County Sheriff’s helicopter performed water drops, and other agencies assisted in creating fire lines. About 200 acres have burned, but Ringleb said that could rise to nearly 400 or 500 acres as they allow the Compound Fire to burn out. “Lucky for us there’s not a lot of homes out here at all, if any. Everything is sort of to the north of us,” Ringleb said. Blake Mahl, who lives just north of the Compound Fire, expressed relief about the wind direction.
