Wildfire in Miami-Dade grows to 24,000 acres amid fire weather watch: What to know

Crews are working to contain a wildfire in southwest Miami-Dade that has been shutting down access in and out of the Florida Keys.

Thousands of acres are now burned and the size of the fire kept growing despite continuous efforts to put out the flames.

Here's what to know about the fire – officially known as the 344 fire – including road closures, weather conditions and firefight operations.

How big is the fire?

According to the Florida Forest Service, the fire, which began Tuesday, is 24,000 acres in size and was about 30% contained as of Thursday afternoon.

What roads are closed?

U.S. 1 will open and close intermittently for an uncertain amount of time for fire operations, officials said.

Card Sound Road, the only other road connecting the Keys to Florida City on the mainland, remains closed until further notice.

What is a red flag warning?

As crews worked to extinguish and control and fire, the National Weather Service issued a red flag fire warning for Thursday for a large area of South Florida and up to the Lake Okeechobee area.

When gusty winds and low humidity are expected, a red flag warning may be issued. This means fire danger is high, with an increased probability of a fire quickly spreading out of control.

The red flag warning was canceled by Thursday evening and was replaced by a fire weather watch for Friday morning through the evening.

FIRE WEATHER WATCH in effect for tomorrow, Friday 21st, for Palm Beach, Broward, & Miami-Dade Co. due to low relative humidity, with northerly winds 10-15 mph, & existing drought conditions. There are elevated fire weather concerns and outdoor burning is NOT recommended. pic.twitter.com/T0HkjEGxTQ

— NWS Miami (@NWSMiami) March 21, 2025

It is not rare for brush fires to break out in South Florida during what is known as dry season. Rainy season begins in mid-May.

Are there any injuries or threatened structures?

There were no reported injuries as of Thursday. The area where the fire broke out is largely rural. Officials said no structures are threatened.

How do crews fight the fire?

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue said it is working with the Florida Forest Service to put out the fire. Crews were seen on the ground and in the air, working around the clock.

The Florida Forest Service gave NBC6 a closer look at the firefight along Card Sound Road.

“It is dry enough for everything to burn, but wet enough that we can’t put our equipment there without sinking. So it’s very challenging," said Kevin MacEwen with the Florida Forest Service.

Aerial operations have been crucial in this battle as Miami-Dade Fire Rescue and the Florida Forest Service can’t access certain areas on the ground.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue’s Air Rescue mission involves deploying Bambi Buckets to release water into the hotspots. There are two MDFR chopper crews actively working the fire, circling back every 1 to 2 minutes.

NBC6 observed helicopters hovering over a lake near the Homestead-Miami Speedway and using the buckets to collect the water. The helicopters then fly over back to the fire to dump the water there.

“It’s probably one of the more dangerous operations that we conduct. We do conduct a lot of training on it," said Chief Pilot Robert Wallis of Miami-Dade Fire Rescue.

The Florida Forest Service has four helicopters on the scene, along with four planes. Each bucket carries about 320 gallons of water.

“Aviation is always a risky business to some level but it is inherently safe, and fire is also a potentially dangerous operation so when we mix the two ... but you know we are extremely cautious," said Francis Neeley of Florida Forest Service Aviation. "We go through protocol, we do checklists, and this is why we do briefings before and debriefings after.”