‘Catastrophic’: Western Kansas wildfires burn through Friday leaving miles of devastation
Waldo Fire Chief Dustin Finkenbinder was on high alert Wednesday as high winds came through his small town in Russell County, Kansas.
Winds moving from Colorado through the state knocked down power lines in the early afternoon causing wildfires that raged for 14 hours and left a trail of devastation. Firefighters were still working to put out fires into Friday afternoon.
“We had so many fires at one time, I think we had six different fires just in our district and with wind speeds like that, there wasn’t anything we could do to stop it so we just started getting people out ahead of it,” Finkenbinder said.
As the fire moved through the region, residents in four towns were evacuated. Finkenbinder said that in total, about 500 to 600 people were evacuated from their homes in the course of the evening. Entire homes and acres of farmland were destroyed, some families losing many of their cattle.
The fire destroyed an area about 45 miles long, Finkenbinder said.
“We fought fire and winds 50 miles an hour before, but nothing like maybe 100 miles an hour. So we just kind of did what we could,” he said. “As far as damage, I mean I guess catastrophic would be the right word.”
Fire departments in neighboring counties sent reinforcements and firefighters to help control the fires, with an estimated 300 firefighters in total responding, he said.
The fire started around 2:30 p.m. Wednesday and firefighters didn’t return to their stations until about 5 a.m. Thursday. However, as winds continued through the region on Thursday, firefighters were deployed again to fight residual fires on the perimeters. And were out again Friday afternoon fighting several fires.
High winds were seen throughout Kansas Wednesday, with a “wall of dust” moving through the western portion of the state. Schools were closed as a precaution, and roads were closed as low visibility made driving difficult and winds toppled semi-trucks.
By the afternoon, high winds had reached the Kansas City metro, clocking in at 77 mph at Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport, where portions of the roof were ripped off.
In Russell County, firefighters could smell the smoke Wednesday before they could see it because of wind and dust.
“I tried to let (people) know, maybe an hour before it got to their house,” Finkerbinder said. “One lady, I think the fire was about 10 miles west of her house when I warned her and I think within 30 minutes her house was gone.”
Families who lost their homes are trying to rebuild, he said, with community members bringing donations, as well as water and hay for livestock.
“It’s going to be tough,” he said. “Tough on everybody. But like right now you see neighbors that have lost stuff or they’re helping their neighbors worse off. Inspiring, I guess would be the word I’m looking for.”
This story was originally published December 17, 2021 at 3:14 PM.