Road 702 Fire nearly contained

CAMBRIDGE, Neb. -- As the Road 702 Fire inches closer to full containment, Nebraska officials have taken over control of the response once again.

The Nebraska Emergency Management Agency says the wildfire burning in southwest Nebraska is now 97 percent contained.

Nebraska's incident management team reassumed control of the response coordination Friday morning.

A regional crew from Colorado had been leading the response all week.

State officials say that while they continue to see progress, the potential for high winds and lighting on Friday have them on high alert for the fire to start spreading again.

“The type 3 IMT will continue to provide rest and relief for local volunteer firefighters as they prepare to pick the fire back up on Saturday,” said Incident Commander Matt Holte of the Nebraska Forest Service. “These local fire departments will be faced with a lot of needs and concerns as they continue to monitor and patrol the area after the outside resources have departed. We want to make sure they have recovered from their extraordinary efforts in the first days of this fire.”

Holte said the IMT is focusing efforts on the Republican River corridor south of Highway 6 where trees and vegetation are still smoldering.

“At the request of the state, the CIMT integrated with state officials and agencies,” said Earl Imler, NEMA preparedness and operations manager. “It was one team, one voice working with great cohesiveness and cooperation. The state would like to thank the team for its professionalism and dedication as it served the citizens of our state.”

The blaze has charred over 44,000 acres in three Nebraska counties and another two in Kansas.