Thats going to use a lot of marshmallows

[Onepoint]

I knew it was dry, and last year we had some fires close, but we had some dry lightning hit and start 3 fires at once, ironically witnessed and reported by our local flight for life air crew.   Just 5 hours and nearly 10000 acres later we were watching scenes like this all night.

This was from a neighbor's house about 3 miles NE of us.  The fire is south east of us about 12 to 15 miles SE as the crow flies.

[Onepoint]

It has already wiped one families home and belongings out, and they have had a rush to get livestock out of the area etc, but man what a surreal view. especially after dark

[stetto]

Man! You guys stay safe!

[Onepoint]

Heh, nothing here to burn, but sure ravaged the places over in those canyons and draws from series of ridges that run parallel to the river valley.  Most of the brush and trees are in the shelter of those ridges and draws, with the tops being grass, which is short this year and some sage brush, and whatever springs tend to be in them as well.  So it makes a good place to plunk houses I guess despite being 20 miles of dirt road from town.  There are a few less now, 3 were total losses, 7 more damaged and burned a lot of what trees were along the road up a draw they call Carter canyon.  About 15000 acres worth now, and still burning, though I think it's starting to get harder to find a good fuel source.  I think it had them worried though, they called in all available local fire assets after it jumped a road and fire line and they had airtankers on it all day yesterday when the smoke permitted, which was bad. Wind would shift directions constantly, for a while we would be near 1mile visibility, then a couple hours later it would just be hazy.

Didn't help that at the sugar factory in Scottsbluff the same night one of their 4 story tall sugar stacks caught fire, which is the same fire dept that was responding to the brushfire.

[Onepoint]

Welp, that was bad, still burning up some draws, but mostly has exhausted most of the fuel it can get to and turned into a large grass fire.

[jetmex]

Eric, are you and all of yours ok?

[Onepoint]

Oh yeah, close enough to be a 1st hand spectacle, far enough away to make it someone else's disaster.  I have been seeing all kinds of funds set up, and people offering free rentals etc for people who lost their places.  Gotta love Americans.

They had 7 tankers and water drop helis, plus 2 ag planes running on it yesterday, I bet that was a busy AirBoss in that little space.