A new fire affecting mostly public property near Tuttle Creek Lake gave Riley County firefighters some challenges Monday.
This one was in the area of Baldwin Park Road, north of University Park. Riley County issued a new disaster declaration to request assistance. No structures were threatened and no evacuations were said to be necessary as of late Monday evening. Crews were conducting back burning to help reduce available fuels.
At Monday’s Pottawatomie County Commission meeting, Emergency Management Director Jennifer Merrow noted the lake fire and Shannon Creek fires were both well contained. No structural damage was seen.
“There was some smoldering, there was back burns done to prevent further spread, so overall it was contained very well. Firefighters in the county did one heck of a job over the weekend and all of last week. They’re exhausted,” she said.
Merrow thanked commissioners for their verbal declaration last Wednesday when fires initially broke out across the region.
“Even though we couldn’t get the aircraft in, initially they had approved the large aircraft (the tanker 95) to come in, but during that small communication time frame the wind shears came in and they had to ground them all,” she said.
A fire also developed at the county landfill last Thursday but was quickly contained, according to County Sanitarian Scott Schwinn.
County fire officials continue to remind residents to properly discard cigarettes, keep vehicles off dry gas, avoid activities with open flames and have an evacuation plan.
Fire danger remains high Tuesday. A wind advisory will be in effect this afternoon into this evening.
An enhanced risk for severe weather is also in place for this evening. Stay tuned to KMAN for weather alerts throughout the day.
