Drought, fire make trouble for S. Florida

WESTON, Fla., April 23 (UPI) -- A combination of fire, drought, rain and lightning made for zero visibility Thursday, causing the closure of a major route across South Florida, officials said.

Known as Alligator Alley, the four-lane Interstate 75 was closed for a 78-mile stretch beginning Wednesday evening and continuing throughout the day Thursday, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported. A brushfire caused by lightning burned 3,000 acres and forced drivers to use detours instead of the super-highway -- which typically allows motorists to travel between Gold Coast and Gulf Coast across the Everglades in about two hours.

Alligator Alley is typically used by about 25,000 vehicles a day. It was shut down nine times due to smoke or fire from 2003 to 2008, the Sun-Sentinel said.

Scott Peterich of the Florida Division of Forestry told the newspaper the brushfire illustrates how dry the state is as a result of drought.

"It's so dry out there that you can have a lightning strike in the rain, and if it catches some wood or log it might eventually ignite after a couple of days," Peterich said.

More than 1,500 fires throughout Florida have consumed 42,850 acres this year and state water management officials have imposed a burning ban across South Florida.