State sends helicopters to Reno County to help with fires

Updated, 11:31 a.m.: Authorities say two grass fires have burned more than 5,000 acres in central Kansas but no injuries and little damage has been reported.

Deputy state emergency operations center manager Devan Tucking says the fires are 80 to 90 percent contained Monday after crews spent the weekend fighting them. The National Weather Service says the firefight in Reno, Rice and McPherson counties will be complicated by dry, shifting winds, with gusts of up to 60 mph.

One fire burned about 4,800 acres. A smaller blaze burned in a rural area south of Hutchinson. Two homes and two outbuildings have been damaged.

Updated, 11 a.m.: Two Black Hawk helicopters headed to Reno County on Monday morning to help fight grass fires raging in the area.

“The helicopters are piloted and crewed by Kansas National Guard Soldiers with 1st Battalion, 108th Aviation Regiment” out of Salina, Kansas Division of Emergency Management tweeted at 9:45 a.m. They’ll be dropping water on the affected areas.

Reno, Rice and McPherson county residents are being urged to continue monitoring the situation and be on alert for dangers associated with the fires.

Updates are expected during a news briefing scheduled for 11:30 a.m. Monday at the Hutchinson Fire Department’s Command Training Center, 3201 E. 4th in Hutchinson, Reno County Sheriff Randy Henderson said on Facebook.

Original story: Hutchinson-area residents who were evacuated due to a grass fire were allowed to return to their homes Sunday evening.

Some residents near the Highlands Golf Club north of Hutchinson were displaced after a grass fire broke out in the area Sunday afternoon, according to a release Monday morning from the Kansas State Incident Management Team.

A temporary Red Cross shelter was set up for those who were evacuated at the First Church of the Nazarene in Hutchinson, though Red Cross disaster program manager Dicie Nicklaus said Monday morning that nobody stayed overnight at the shelter.

Just over 100 people did, however, spend time at the shelter Sunday afternoon and evening, according to the Red Cross.

The Highlands-area fire – which is estimated to have burned about 2,700 acres – was discovered near 82nd Avenue and Hendricks Street. The fire later moved into Rice County, according to the release.

Another fire, referred to as the Jupiter Hills fire, was discovered in the area on Saturday and has burned about 1,200 acres.

No injuries have been reported. Fire crews battled both blazes on Sunday and continued to monitor the area overnight.

Several homes in the Highlands area were damaged, including one that had “heavier” damage, according to the news release. Three outbuildings have been destroyed by the Jupiter Hills fire.

A wind advisory remains in effect for the Hutchinson area until 8 p.m., according to the National Weather Service. An extreme grassland fire danger warning is also in effect for most of south-central Kansas, including Reno, Sedgwick and Rice counties, according to the service.

This story was originally published March 6, 2017 at 8:52 AM with the headline "State sends helicopters to Reno County to help with fires."