CAMBRIDGE, Neb. — A retired fire chief died, and at least 15 firefighters have been injured by wind-driven wildfires sweeping across portions of Nebraska.
Alyssa Sanders, with the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency, confirmed to The Associated Press on Sunday that John P. Trumble, 66, was overcome by smoke and fire after his vehicle left the road Friday due to poor visibility.
Trumble, a retired fire chief in Cambridge, Nebraska, was working with firefighters as a spotter in Red Willow County, where the blaze had scorched more than 78 square miles by Sunday afternoon. His body was found early Saturday, the AP reported.
According to NEMA, wildfires have been reported in at least 12 of the state’s counties since Friday, The New York Times reported.
Of the 15 known injured firefighters, five were working the fire that killed Trumble, but NEMA could not immediately provide status updates on any of the wounded. None were considered life-threatening, the newspaper reported.
Corey Mead, a forecaster with the National Weather Service, told the Times late Saturday that a strong storm system brought “very strong winds” to Nebraska, and the same system drew dry air from the high plains of Colorado and New Mexico.
“Grasses are just beginning to turn green. However, there’s a lot of tall grass that’s still dormant from the winter, so that tall grass is very dry and serves as fuel for fire ignition, whether it’s downed power lines due to the strong winds or even lightning associated with storms,” Mead said.
According to NEMA, the Indiana National Guard deployed at least three helicopters and several trucks to help extinguish the blazes, and the Wildland Incident Response Team dispatched specialists to several, the Times reported.
Farther southwest, the 21,000-acre Tunnel Fire near Flagstaff, Arizona, was 3% contained as of Saturday morning, according to the U.S. Forest Service. The cause of the fire, which started on April 17, remains under investigation, the newspaper reported.
Meanwhile, 20 wildfires continued to burn across New Mexico on Sunday, including one blaze that has consumed 84 square miles.
- The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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