Despite calmer winds, conditions are still conducive for fire activity and local fire crews have had to handle more than one grass fire Saturday.
Emporia and Olpe firefighters were called to 764 Road 70 west of Olpe for a grass fire just before 9:45 am. Crews were later called to 536 Road 200 roughly 3 miles northwest of Emporia for a brush fire around 2 pm but were canceled shortly after.
Area firefighters were toned out for a third brush fire just before 3 pm at 3173 Road G, just over 9 miles southwest of Allen. A controlled burn then became out of control on Road L just after 4 pm.
According to Emporia Fire the landowner successfully burned 160 acres as planned before the fire jumped a fence line and burned less than five acres of a neighboring pasture. Emporia Fire also responded to a non-weather related fire at Flying J around 4:30 pm.
A 30-gallon trash barrel caught fire for unknown reasons but was quickly extinguished before it could spread.
Several small grass fires were also reported in rural portions of Lyon County between 3:30 and 6 pm, however, details on those fires have not been released.
No structural damage or injuries were reported.
Elsewhere in the listening area:
*Chase County lifted a burn ban in place since Thursday morning. Burning is permitted in the county between 11 am and 7 pm. No out of control burns have been reported since the ban was lifted.
Other neighboring counties reported controlled burns are underway, however, no out of control fires have been reported.
Wind speeds have settled considerably since Friday when gusts between 60-70 mph led to widespread grass fires and power outages for Lyon and surrounding counties.
Winds have been steadily between 15-30 mph throughout the day. Despite the calmer conditions, residents are reminded that any fires that develop could still spread easily and rapidly due to a combination of high temperatures in the upper 60s and low humidity levels.
Moderate winds are forecasted for Sunday which could increase the fire danger once again. Residents are encouraged to check all past burns for potential rekindles and to not leave any fires unattended for any length of time.
6:30 am Saturday: WEATHER: Lighter wind speeds Saturday following widespread fires and power outages Friday
Wind speeds will be significantly lighter compared to Friday, however, fire danger still exists within the KVOE listening area.
High winds Friday brought various issues to the area including a number of grass and brush fires between the early afternoon to evening hours. In Lyon County, fire activity began with a reported brush fire along US Highway 50 near Road G and the Emporia RV Park, followed in short order by a fire at the Lyon County Transfer Station and the 1300 block of Road 175. An additional fire was reported near Roads 140 and F shortly before 4 pm.
Emporia Fire also responded to a pair of rekindles in the overnight hours. No injuries or structural damage were reported.
Elsewhere across the KVOE listening area:
*Chase County reported several small grass fires Friday afternoon. No structural damage has been reported so far.
*Coffey County has reported at least seven grass fires. Further details are pending.
*Greenwood County has been “busy” with an unlisted number of grass fires through the afternoon. There has been no structural damage reported.
Winds will be significantly lighter Saturday into Sunday with forecasts calling for steady winds between 25-45 mph. The fire danger is also significantly lower than in the past 24 hours after Red Flag Warnings and wind advisories covered the entire listening area.
That being said, Lyon County Emergency Manager Jarrod Fell is still asking residents to keep a watchful eye for the potential of fire activity, especially rekindles.
In addition to the extreme fire danger, power outages were commonplace across the area Friday with over 4,000 customers offline in Lyon and surrounding counties at one time. The largest concentration of outages occurred along South Kansas Highway 99 from Madison to Eureka with more than 3,000 customers affected at one time.
Outages also effected several hundred customers in Chase and Coffey counties throughout the day Friday and 4 Rivers Electric Cooperative reported issues after several delivery points lost power in the early afternoon. All outages have since been restored.
Fire conducive conditions will give way to chances of severe storm activity Tuesday. The main concerns are hail and strong winds.
Wind speeds and low humidity could also set up a high to extreme fire danger risk for the area Tuesday.
Stay with KVOE, KVOE.com and KVOE social media for more weather updates as they become available.
