Fire crews in Lackawanna County had their hands full battling brush fires on Monday.
The National Weather Service issued a red flag warning Monday for possible fires throughout most of the day.
Heavy smoke poured out of a wooded area and over Ferdinand Street in West Scranton.
Fire crews continued to haul water to the flames, using smaller equipment to get to places the larger engines couldn't.
As the fire department worked to contain the fire, people in nearby homes watched with worry.
“My uncle George, he's the first house that's on top so he's pretty concerned about it coming down that far,” said Dylan Granahan.
“A little bit, we're just hoping that everything gets better and they can put the fire out,” said Jennifer Pitts.
“Our biggest concern was these resident properties that are here,” said Scranton Deputy Fire Chief Al Lucas. “We're good now, we got them protected and now we'll just take care of the rest of the business.”
The National Weather Service issued a red flag warning for northeastern Pennsylvania to alert residents of potential brush fires.
Over in Dickson City, smoke could be seen billowing from Bell Mountain, just beyond Business Route 6.
While the fire was in a secluded area, residents on the mountain still came out to check on it.
They said with the combination of the dry weather and heavy winds, they do expect to see brush fires popping up.
“That's going to happen, this dry season, no rain,” said Joe Karlavige.
Fire crews say when conditions are this dry and this windy, they ask residents to do what they can to keep both themselves and fire fighters safe.
“Be careful with any outside burning at all,” said Chief Lucas. “It's banned in the city and we suggest that you avoid any outside burning whatsoever, as you can see one ember can jump with this kind of wind.”