A grass fire that sparked due to mowing operations on February 26 continues to smolder. The fire’s lifespan eclipsed a week this past Monday. Response began with first responders from North Platte, but the blaze quickly commanded the attention of several area departments and eventually state agencies.
Region 51 Emergency Management Director Brandon Myers told KCNI/KBBN News on Wednesday morning that some fire crews are still out working on getting some deep seeded hot spots completely extinguished. He went on to say that there is no concern of them getting out of control.
The most recent update from NEMA on the afternoon of Thursday February 29 indicated the fire was 98% contained and that four primary residences had been destroyed along with countless outbuilding and agricultural infrastructures.
An informational meeting for cattle producers in central Nebraska affected by the wildfires is set for March 12 at 6:30 pm at the West Central Research, Extension, and Education Center in North Platte. Several representatives from various agencies will be available to answer questions about assistance programs as well as cattle and range management after a fire.
Much of the central United States region continues to cross fingers for some form of precipitation to give relief from dry fire-producing conditions. Thursday may offer help for some Nebraska counties, as a winter weather advisory will go into effect for a good portion of the middle of the state. One to two inches of snow accumulations with locally higher amounts are possible.
