Crews made progress Thursday against wind-whipped wildfires that spread from
Oklahomainto southern
Kansas, burning hundreds of square miles of largely grassland.
While at least one home in Kansas and several outbuildings were destroyed, no serious injuries were reported.
Smoke from the fire, which burned
about 620 square miles in the two states, was reportedly detected as far away as St. Louis, hundreds of miles to the northeast.
Gov.
Sam Brownback said Thursday that the fire was largely contained in Kansas except in Barber County, which is southwest of Wichita along the border with Oklahoma. He encouraged people to heed requests to evacuate.
"We haven't sustained any fatalities yet, but that doesn't mean we can push it," he said.
In Oklahoma, the fire was moving toward the city of Alva, population about 5,000, but by early Thursday evening, the flames had not advanced enough to prompt evacuations there, according to Oklahoma Forestry Services spokeswoman Michelle Finch-Walker.
Oklahoma authorities said the cause of the fire was under investigation.
Strong winds with gusts of 50 mph fed the fires Wednesday, but with conditions "not as intense" and more crews arriving, firefighters were able to "get out there and really attack the fire" on Thursday, said Shawna Hartman, the spokesman for the Kansas Forest Service.
Darcy Golliher, a spokeswoman for the Kansas Incident Management Team, said the section of the fire in Barber County, which has sustained the most damage, was about 15 percent contained late Thursday and is expected to last through Friday. She said there hopefully would be only a few hot spots to monitor over the weekend.
Wildfire Burns About 620 Square Miles in Kansas, Oklahoma
Whee, 620 square miles. I hope that is not a harbinger of things to come for this year.
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