Florida Fire is Planned at State Park

HOBE SOUND, Fla. (AP) _ A prescribed burn is planned for Jonathan Dickinson State Park in southeast Florida.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection said about 300 acres of pine flatwoods in the park in Hobe Sound will be burned Wednesday, weather permitting.

State officials say prescribed burning mimics natural fire cycles to restore healthy forests and natural communities, reduce undergrowth that accumulates over time and decreases the potential for wildfire. Burned lands experience an increase in native wildflowers, birds and other wildlife.

Hobe Sound is in Martin County, about 20 miles north of West Palm Beach.