BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) – Heavy smoke from a wildfire enveloped a stretch of Daniel Payne Drive near Acipco Industrial Drive in Birmingham Thursday afternoon. This brush fire is one of a string of wildfires across central Alabama over the last few weeks as drought conditions persist.

Birmingham Fire said fire breaks were cut in around Daniel Payne Drive around 4:30 p.m. The Alabama Forestry Commission was helping them backburn to the origin of the fire.

Birmingham Fire said no buildings were impacted by the fire and no one was hurt. While the cause is unknown, it could have been started in many different ways.

“It could have been any number of things from a vehicle dragging a chain or something going down the road sparking to somebody throwing out a cigarette butt,” Birmingham Fire Battalion Chief Clay Hendon said.

Cahaba Valley Fire and Rescue says while it hasn’t responded to any fires, three neighboring departments were fighting wildfires Thursday afternoon.

The fire department says because the area hasn’t seen much rain and there’s low humidity, it leads to prime conditions for fires to ignite and spread.

“With the dry conditions we have now and wind conditions, it can go from a small, what could seem like a small debris trash fire up to a couple acres in just a matter of 15 minutes or so,” Cahaba Valley Fire and Rescue Captain Russ Bradley said.

Firefighters say it’s important to remember we are under a fire alert and warns people to be extra cautious when discarding cigarette butts or using fire pits.