Members of the Abingdon Volunteer Fire and Rescue Squad endured frigid conditions New Year’s Day morning to battle a woods fire that originated off Heron Point Road at the far southeast corner of Guinea Neck. According to AVFRS spokesperson Robert Parlett, the blaze burned about four acres and the cause is still unknown.

Parlett said firefighters were called to the scene just after 8:30 a.m. Upon arrival, they were faced not only with the windy and cold conditions, but also had to tackle eight-foot-tall brush and underbrush, which made fighting the fire even more cumbersome. “If it were just a brush fire, we wouldn’t have had to deal with that, but with a woods fire, the terrain makes it much more difficult,” he said.

According to Parlett, firefighters were able to stay relatively warm in their layered turnout gear. However, with temperatures below 20 degrees for most of the time the fire was being fought, the volunteers had to deal with frozen hoses a...