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A Gloucester firefighter helps move a line as firefighters battles a fire on Poles Hill in Gloucester on Aug. 1. Firefighters have been putting out hot spots and monitoring the site since.

A Gloucester firefighter helps move a line as firefighters battles a fire on Poles Hill in Gloucester on Aug. 1. Firefighters have been putting out hot spots and monitoring the site since.

Around noon Wednesday, fire Assistant Chief Bob Rivas said he and a crew were heading up to Gloucester’s Poles Hill to walk the perimeter of the stubborn brush fire that broke out last week to check for hot spots.

He said crews were going up and checking the perimeter on a daily basis.

These continued checks come after crews from Gloucester and surrounding towns and state forestry crews battled a smoky three-alarm brush fire that firefighters were first dispatched to 11 days ago, on Monday, Aug. 1, at 10:45 a.m.

The fire has charred almost 20 acres, the city’s fire chief said last week.

To further fight the fire, the Massachusetts Army National Guard used a helicopter to perform two days of aerial water drops on a portion of the steep, hilly conservation area with thick brush that abuts homes on Washington, Wheeler and Ferry streets and Riverview Road.

Rivas said crews are still checking for flare-ups despite some intermittent thundershowers, including one Tuesday afternoon. The rain has definitely helped, he said.

“Yesterday, we had to put some water on a few spots,” Rivas said. That was before the rain. Crews walk the perimeter, hiking to spots they know had been a problem.

“We’ll have to monitor it for a while,” Rivas said.

Meanwhile in Rockport, the Woodlands Acres brush fire has scorched more than 10 acres since it first blazed on July 13.

Crews were out again on Monday afternoon and also on Sunday night for eight hours after it flared up. They were also called in three separate times on Saturday to fight flare-ups.

The fire has been contained within boundaries set by the state Department of Conservation and Recreation in late July. DCR Chief Fire Warden Dave Celino told a public meeting last week that the only way the fire will be completely extinguished would be by two to three inches of rain over a two- or three-day period.

Rockport Forest Fire Warden Michael Frontierro said crews responded to Woodland Acres three times Tuesday.

Once in the morning, once after 2 p.m., and once at night, though Frontierro said that call was for a report of smoke which turned out to be mist.

“Right now, it’s quiet,” Frontierro said just after 1 p.m. Wednesday. As to the thundershowers that have helped with the Poles Hill brush fire, Woodland Acres got “nothing to speak of,” though Frontierro said it did rain at his house.

“We are going to monitor it for now,” Frontierro said. “Hopefully the weather is going to be in our favor.” He said fire does not like the cool, overcast weather.

“If and when it comes up, we’ll attack it,” he said of the brush fire.

He also said early Wednesday afternoon that so far it was the first day since July 25, crews had not been up to Woodland Acres. Shortly after 5 p.m. Wednesday, they were back checking on signs of smoke.

In Gloucester, Council President Valerie Gilman, who represents Ward 4, responded to a resident’s call on Facebook for a public meeting for those affected by the Poles Hill fire.

Gilman said that she would be happy to entertain such a meeting, but that a City Council meeting would be the better, proper venue to hear from the city’s Fire Department leaders. Gilman said the City Council has invited fire Chief Eric Smith and Rivas to the next council meeting on Aug. 23.

She said the council is looking for an update on the Poles Hill fire and drought restrictions on outdoor fireplaces, fire pits, and open recreational fires. She said councilors will also get an update on the status of the depth of the city’s reservoirs.

The Aug. 9 council meeting, she she made a request to the mayor for a gate at the entrance to Poles Hill with a sign calling for no trespassing from dusk to dawn.

Ethan Forman may be contacted at 978-675-2714,or at eforman@northofboston.com.

Ethan Forman may be contacted at 978-675-2714,or at eforman@northofboston.com.

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