Wildfire near Ashland mostly contained, official says

A western Kansas wildfire broke out 5 miles west of Ashland at noon Monday and quickly raced out of control in 20 to 30 mph winds.

Millie Fudge, coordinator of Clark County Emergency Preparedness, said a statewide declaration has been issued as well as a call for help with nearby fire departments.

The fire at 1:40 p.m. Monday was 3 miles long.

The National Weather Service has issued a red flag warning for much of southwest and central Kansas. The strong northwest winds combined with low humidity has placed the area in extreme fire danger.

“It’s not out of the question pockets of catastrophic levels could be reached this afternoon,” the NWS statement said. “Any fire that starts will be very difficult to control.”

Fudge said the state is sending aircraft to the scene and homes are being evacuated in the area.

Fire departments from Oklahoma are also being called to assist in fighting the fire.

Last year on March 6, 15 wildfires caused evacuations in Ashland, Englewood, Protection, Stockton and Wilson.

The fire on Monday near Ashland was started when a vehicle caught on fire, said Allison Kuhns, Clark County public information officer.

By 3 p.m., most of the out-of-county fire crews had been sent home and officials were estimating 1,500 to 2,000 acres had burned.

And by 4:15 p.m., the Ashland area fire was mostly contained, Kuhns said. Fire crews were working on hot spots within the burned area.

Crews from the Kansas Forest Service remained on the scene providing air and ground support.

“We are hopeful that we are getting it,” Kuhns said. “But you never know with the way the wind is. We sent the out-of-county agencies home because there are fires popping up all over the area and they need to go respond to their own fires.”

This story was originally published March 5, 2018 at 2:14 PM with the headline "Wildfire near Ashland mostly contained, official says."