ISLAND FALLS – Firefighters had gained the upper hand Thursday on most of the two dozen forest fires that have been burning in parts of central and northern Maine.

Light rain that fell Thursday was expected to help firefighters in Aroostook County who already had contained most of the fires there.

The largest of the fires was at Deasey Mountain in Township 3 Range 7 west of Stacyville in northern Penobscot County. The fire, first reported Tuesday afternoon, had increased in size to about 10 acres, according to a spokesperson at the Maine Forest Service East Branch District.

There were about 20 firefighters on the scene Thursday, including four rangers and personnel from Irving Woodlands. Another 12 firefighters were headed to the site late Thursday afternoon. Helicopters had made water drops on the fire again during the day.

The steep terrain on the mountain has required firefighters to fight the fire by hand and with hoses, without the aid of mechanical equipment.

Crews were still on three fires west of Ashland on Thursday, but those fires were contained and were expected to be declared out by Thursday night, according to Ranger Joseph Mints.

A fire on Barnard Mountain in Township 3 Range 8 in northern Penobscot County was declared out.

Another fire at the 3,000-foot level of North Turner Mountain in Baxter State Park was being monitored, but firefighters were not on the scene Thursday. A helicopter also made several water drops on that fire.

All of the fires were caused by “dry” lightning from storms that passed through Piscataquis, Penobscot and Aroostook counties late Sunday night. Little if any rain fell with those storms.

Jim Downie of the Maine Forest Service said Thursday that more fires from lightning strikes could be found over the next few days.

Downie said the fire danger remained very high throughout the state, and an inch of steady rain would be needed to bring the danger down to moderate.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.