Wind-driven fire threatens farmstead
Fire fighters from five different departments battled a wind-driven fire Sunday afternoon that threatened the farmstead of Shirley Kuskie west of Grant.
Fire Chief Fred Reichert said they battled three different fires that started along Road 760 west of town.
The exact cause of the fires is still under investigation, he said.
One small fire occurred near the county road shop and the other two occurred south of the Kuskie farm.
The largest fire burned about 45 acres of grass between Road 760 and the Kuskie farmstead.
In addition, another 35 acres around the farmstead caught fire, threatening buildings and catching 40-50 round bales on fire.
Reichert said their initial efforts concentrated on an aggressive attack to keep the fire from destroying any outbuildings or the home.
He praised fire fighters on the scene, noting no buildings were lost, due to their efforts.
Departments from Grant, Madrid, Venango, Brule and Ogallala responded to the fire with 18 different apparatus on scene.
Reichert said the tall grass was just like a tinder box and burned fiercely, driven by southerly wind with gusts up to 25 mph and temperatures in the mid-90s.
The two larger fires also consumed at least 100 cedar trees that bordered the farmstead.
Electric poles along the road caught fire and the heat damaged wire as well. Both were later replaced by Midwest Electric.
Reichert said volunteers brought over equipment, including a tractor and disc and front-end loader.
A fire guard was disced around the trees and the loader was used to spread out the bales that caught fire.
Firemen manned the bale fire through the night into Monday morning. Grant members went back several times Monday to put out hot spots in both the bales and in the trees.
Reichert praised the firefighters, saying they did a remarkable job, given the heat and the wind. Those conditions take a toll on firefighters.
He also expressed appreciation to people who brought water and food to the scene for fire fighters.
He said hot, dry weather has created extremely dangerous conditions. He urged people to exercise particular caution to avoid fires.
“It’s really serious right now,” he noted.