Brookfield brush fire; assessing damage, future prevention

BROOKFIELD, Wis. - A brush fire broke out in Brookfield on Sunday afternoon, March 9, causing damage at a nearby car dealership and got dangerously close to nearby homes.

What we know:

Propelled by 30 mile an hour wind gusts, the flames got dangerously close to nearby homes.

Brookfield Fire Chief Chris Cass said between 80 and 100 acres burned. It took nearly 4 hours to get under control.

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The fire's cause is still under investigation.

City Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Fiat of Brookfield sales manager Austin Rennhack got called in Sunday to check out the damage. He found five vehicles parked for service along the dealership’s perimeter with burn marks.

The dealership doesn’t have a damage estimate yet. Most of the vehicles impacted are $60,000 Amazon vans.

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Brookfield brush fire; homes evacuated, crews extinguish flames

Several crews were on the scene of a brush fire in Brookfield on Sunday afternoon, March 9.

"If it would have went further in this direction, with the cars we have parked over there – it would have been catastrophic," Rennhack said. "We all wonder how it started. We don’t want it to happen again."

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Stopping a wildfire?

Dig deeper:

22 miles north in Slinger, Rick Cohn claims he can stop a wildfire in its tracks.

"This is called Wild Land Fire Fluid," Cohn said. "Our fluid covers the vegetation – doesn’t cause any damage to the vegetation or the environment."

Cohn said two area fire departments have expressed interest in purchasing his salt-based product. He said it removes heat from whatever is on fire.

Some of it was sprayed in the middle of a straw pile. The fire didn’t spread to the other side.