Bad time to burn, says rural southeast Nebraska fire chief

BEATRICE – According to a rural fire chief in Gage County, it is no time to be burning right now.  Filley Volunteer Firefighters were among those battlIng wind-whipped grass fires on Tuesday, including a large fire north of the community which threatened homes and other buildings.

"There were four houses where it was in the yard. Even the two structures that did catch fire, they were away from the houses. We were very fortunate that we were able to save them....it's pretty unbelievable that they are still standing."

A.J. Wiese is Chief of the Filley Volunteer Fire Department. That huge fire four miles north of the community on Tuesday covered an estimated 200 acres but firefighters were able to keep the structural damage to a minimum, keeping five homes from burning. There was also another fire to fight in the southeast part of the Filley District.

"With the wind direction and as fast it was blowing that hard and sustained....water is a limiting factor in what it can do...because you can put the leading edge of the fire out, but all of the stalks that are burning behind you is what continues to catch you."

Wiese says many of the burns that grow out-of-control are the result of past controlled burns that rekindle. Others are caused by cigarettes being thrown out in rural areas. He says conditions are as dry as he can remember.  "The fire danger is at its highest risk, in my time as chief. We have so much dry tinder out there, that fire can spread very rapidly, on us."

Wiese said brush piles that have been burned can fire up again days later, because of the strong winds that have topped 45-miles-per-hour in recent days.
On Tuesday, Wiese said there were volunteer firefighters leaving their jobs in Lincoln to help douse fires.

"Yesterday was tough, because we were all, throughout the county, being cut thin. Typically, when you get a fire like that you can call in your three surrounding groups or agencies to mutual aid you, but I struck out on two of my first calls for mutual aid right away, because they were out on their own two fires."

There is a Red Flag Warning Wednesday, for extreme fire danger in the area.