BEATRICE- It was another dangerous fire day in Gage County, Thursday.

Firefighters and equipment from multiple departments fought two wildfires pushed north by winds gusting to 40-miles-per-hour. 

One fire started in a soybean field south of Wymore….west of the junction of U.S. Highway 77 and Nebraska Highway 8. Law officers blocked off a section of Highway 8 while firefighters battled that blaze, aided by several farmers using tractors and plows to cut lines and help contain the flames.

At mid-afternoon, a larger fire broke out northwest of Beatrice along Hickory Road.  The flames burned near to the east side of Nebraska Public Power District’s combined cycle natural gas power plant.   Farmers using tractors and discs and at least one road grader were being employed to fight that fire.   The blaze northwest of Beatrice burned under at least one pivot irrigation system and raced through some unharvested corn.

Winds pushed that fire north at least a mile to Hackberry Road, in the mid-afternoon hours.

Gage County Sheriff’s Officers and Nebraska State Patrol troopers stationed units at various rural intersections to keep motorists away from the fire scenes.  Firefighters from Wymore, Barneston, Odell, Pickrell Blue Springs and Beatrice Rural were among those trying to gain control of the fires.

Large areas of Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa and Missouri were included in Red Flag Warnings for extreme fire danger on Thursday.  In southeast Nebraska, temperatures in the 70s, south winds at a steady 25-to-35 miles per hour, and humidity readings in the 25-to-30 percent range were recorded as conditions remain extremely dry.

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