At 5:18pm on 26 July 2026, the Essex Junction Fire Department was dispatched for a smoke investigation after a caller reported smoke coming from the wooded area behind Cascade Park. EJFD responded with Car 9, Engine 5, and Engine 7, along with 9 personnel, to the area. Engine 5 arrived on scene, and the Lieutenant walked into the woods to investigate, finding a spreading brush fire along a walking trail that overlooks the Winooski River. Crews initially tried extinguishing th