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The fire, which has burned 6,631 acres (2,683 hectares), is
mainly in steep, rugged canyon ground and also some grassy
areas, she said. Johnstown, population 60 people, is the closest
town to the fire in the Sandhills in the north-central part of
the state. Some structures might be endangered, but no one's
residence was in danger as of Thursday morning, Pozehl said.
More than 50 fire departments, joined by National Guard members,
were fighting the blaze at its height, as many as 200 to 250
people, she said.
In recent days, responders used two planes to drop fire
retardant, and two National Guard Black Hawk helicopters were
dropping water on Wednesday and Thursday, Pozehl said.
The fire has killed 45 cattle and destroyed a cabin, according
to Gov. Jim Pillen 's office. The governor issued a statewide
burn ban and authorized the Nebraska National Guard to send 29
soldiers and airmen to help volunteer fire departments.
Much of Nebraska is facing drought conditions, with severe or
moderate drought in Brown County where the fire is, said Shawn
Jacobs, warning coordination meteorologist with the National
Weather Service in North Platte.
“This is typical for what we see every year during the spring
months. We have dry, warm, windy days and that's kind of what
happened leading up to the fire,” Jacobs said.
What really helped push the fire and made it difficult to
control were gusty, erratic winds from dry showers that formed,
he said.
Brown County saw from a tenth to a quarter inch (a half
centimeter) of rain Wednesday and overnight, Jacobs said.
Potential rain is in the forecast in days ahead.
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