A 40-acre brush fire burned along the Lee County side of the Lee-Charlotte border about a quarter-mile east of Burnt Store Road.

The fire was completely contained Wednesday afternoon, according to Chief Craig Abberbach with the Cape Coral Fire Department.

The fire department and the Division of Forestry battled the blaze starting at about 3 p.m., with two DOF tractors and two brush trucks on scene, said Abberbach.

The fire was completely contained by the tractors, and workers left the scene at about 5:30 p.m. due to the danger of an impending lightning storm, he said.

Firefighters plan to check on the affected area today, but perceived no immediate threats for the overnight period Wednesday.

Abberbach called Wednesday’s storms a “double-edged sword,” as rain could help to extinguish the fire, but the threat of lightning increases the likelihood of another blaze.

In fact, the cause of Wednesday’s fire is likely lightning from a Tuesday storm, said Abberbach.