WINNEMUCCA - A fire burning close to the Humboldt River scorched about 200 acres Tuesday and putting it out made for a long day for Golconda and Valmy volunteer firemen.
At its height, eight rigs were on the fire, which was located on private land north of the Pumpernickel Valley exit on Interstate 80 and west of the Valmy power plant. Four rigs came from the Golconda Volunteer Fire Department, three rigs came from the Valmy Volunteer Fire Department and one hospital rescue unit provided medical coverage. The fire command center was set up at the Whitehouse ranch.
Valmy fire chief Bill Morrison said about 14 firemen were on the fire and stopped it on the north side of the river. Fire department crews were out from noon until final mopping up around 10:30 p.m. The fire started as a controlled burn that got out of control, he said.
No structures were damaged and no injuries were reported. The fire burned grass, willows and pasture but didn't reach public land managed by the BLM. It's not unusual for vegetation along the river to dry out this early in the year, Morrison said, and fires have occurred in the area previously.
"We were fighting a lot of fuel out there," Morrison said.
Roger Johnson, fire chief for the Golconda Volunteer Fire Department, said ranchers were burning meadows near the river when the controlled burn they thought was out flared up. They worried that winds could push the fire toward the Redhouse ranch about five or six miles away, so crews from the two fire departments arrived to make sure that didn't happen.
Overall, Johnson said, the fire did more good than harm by thinning out the vegetation. Some areas were thick with brush and tules and hadn't burned in decades.
The Valmy and Golconda volunteer fire departments are part of the Golconda Fire Protection District.
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