UPDATED: White City wildfire 'contained'

Crews continued to battle Monday a wildfire near White City that has been causing Florida Division of Forestry crews problems for four days.

The wildfire that consumed some 850 acres of forest lands near White City was labeled "100 percent contained" at 4:45 ET by spokesperson Brian Goddin of the Florida Division of Forestry, however, over the weekend some hot spots had jumped containment lines and the fire was deemed 85 percent contained on Sunday.

An earlier version of this story

Goddin said crews from seven counties had done a "phenomenal" job in the past 24 hours to contain the fire, which broke out around 2 p.m. ET on Thursday.

Goddin said crews were cleaning up "hot spots" but the fire was contained, though forestry crews would continue to monitor the blaze area.

Meanwhile, crews were battlting a wildfire of roughly 30 acres approximately one mile west of Mexico Beach that started late Friday afternoon.

In addition, a small wildfire was put out near Jetty Park in Port St. Joe by crews from the Port St. Joe Fire Department that had rushed from Mexico Beach when the fire, believed started by a discarded burning cigarette.

An earlier version of this story: 

Crews from the Florida Division of Forestry continued to battle a wildfire in northern Gulf County on Friday morning.

As of Friday morning, the blaze had consumed about 850 acres, said Brian Goddin, spokesperson for the Division of Forestry.

The blaze is located in forest land roughly 1.5 miles from White City, off Doc Whitfield Road, approximately 10 miles north of Port St. Joe.

Crews from all seven counties in the Chipola Forestry Center, Gulf, Bay, Jackson, Holmes, Washington, Calhoun, and Walton, are working the blaze.

At of 9 a.m. ET on Friday, Goddin said no homes or structures were in immediate danger and no evacuations have been ordered or were anticipated.

"There is always a concern and that potential," Goddin said, particularly as the day heats up and dries out.

"This is a pretty big fire for us," Goddin added. "This really took off. But the crews responded quickly."

It is believed that the fire was originally started as a result of some kind of equipment spark possibly from a skidder from logging operations taking place in that area on Thursday.

By 4 p.m. ET on Thursday the wildfire had been doubling in size about every 30 minutes during the afternoon. Between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. the fire grew from 50 acres to 350 acres.

"It just kept doubling on us," Goddin said.

It had consumed 750 acres by late Thursday night but the night's humidity and lower temperatures had assisted crews in containing the fire, Goddin said.

Goddin said up to 20 tractor/bulldozers to carve out containment lines and two helicopters had been deployed to dip and drop water on the fire.

As of Friday morning the fire was remaining within containment lines and Goddin said crews were widening the lines for additional distance between the fire and unscathed land to reduce the odds of hot embers being blown beyond the containment lines and spreading the reach of the fire. 

"It has slowed down quite a bit, but we will see as the day goes along and the temperatures rise," Goddin said.

Check back for more details as warranted.

Meanwhile, the Gulf County Health Department and the Florida Department of Health (DOH) caution citizens that wildfire smoke is a respiratory irritant that can cause scratchy throat or irritated eyes and nose. Smoke can also worsen conditions such as asthma and other chronic respiratory or lung conditions.

 How to protect your family from smoke:

 * Pay attention to local air quality reports, news coverage or health warnings

   related to smoke.

 * Use common sense when outside conditions are smoky. Avoid prolonged

   outdoor activities. It is especially important to limit time spent outdoors for

   children and persons with existing medical conditions.

 * Stay indoors and run your air conditioner, if you have one. Keep the fresh air

   intake closed and the filter clean to prevent bringing additional smoke inside. For

   best results, run the air conditioning with re-circulated air.

 Note: If you do not have an air conditioner, staying inside with the windows

closed may be dangerous in extremely hot weather. In these cases, seek

alternative shelter.

 *Help keep particle levels lower inside. When smoke levels are high, try to avoid

  using anything that burns, such as wood fireplaces, gas logs, gas stoves and

  even candles. Do not vacuum, which stirs up particles already inside your home.

  also do not smoke tobacco.

 *Follow your doctor’s advice about taking medicines and following your asthma

 management plan if you have asthma or other lung disease. Call your doctor if

 your symptoms worsen.