Multiple families lose homes and livestock in fire near Kansas-Nebraska line
"We don’t have a number on personal property damaged yet," said Jewell County Sheriff Don Jacobs.
LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Many families in Burr Oak, Kansas, and surrounding areas in Kansas and Nebraska are feeling the effects of a fire that began Tuesday afternoon.
Families in the area have lost sheds, farm equipment, houses, and livestock. At the time, no deaths have been reported, and the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
“We don’t have a number on personal property damaged yet,” Jewell County Sheriff Don Jacobs said. “As far as I’m aware, it was only one person injured, and it was just a minor injury.”
Burr Oak resident Janice McCutcheon was at the Grand Island Sam’s Club when she received a call from her children, who told her about the situation. “We stopped, and we cried, then we kept on putting groceries in the cart,” McCutcheon said.
Photo Courtesy: NTV News
With the rapid response of fire departments from both states, along with help from surrounding farmers, her house was saved by yards. Many of McCutcheon’s neighbors weren’t as lucky.
Towns in Jewell County and surrounding communities are coming together to donate to the firefighters. A Facebook post from Grate Expectations Cafe, located in Burr Oak, said:
“The cafe has become ground zero for a group of volunteers from Burr Oak, Lebanon, Mankato, Esbon, and Jewell that are contributing food and helping to prepare and deliver it to the firefighters working north of town to contain and stop a grass fire during this dry and windy time. We think the fire departments from Burr Oak, Mankato, Republic, Glen Elder, Lebanon, Esbon, Guide Rock, Red Cloud, Blue Hill, and Lawrence are involved. Thanks to everyone donating food and time to help.”
Jewell County said the fire is the largest the county has ever had, with a last estimated eight to nine thousand acres burned.
On Wednesday, emergency crews from both states scheduled their shifts to battle the fire, but they still don’t know when it will be extinguished.
“It could be days, it could be weeks, as we were told,” Jacobs said.
