COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. - The Avian Complex Fire in Big Cypress National Preserve is now over 82,000 acres and only five percent contained.
The Avian Complex is made up of three other fires. While Southern Area Incident Managedment said the rain helped put out flames in dry, grassy areas, they said it hasn't penetrated the ground with more tree coverage.
"With that amount of acreage we still have a lot of heat, so we're gonna need an extended period of substantial rain. There's still a lot of heat in the stumps and the heavier, thicker fuels," Stephen Spradley of Southern Area Incident Management said.
Firefighters can work in rainy conditions as long as there is no threat of lightning, he said.
Monday, crews removed downed trees and debris from roads and trails in the preserve.