What began as a controlled burn got out of hand for a while Wednesday afternoon. Assistant Fire Chief Paul Morris says staff at H&R Salvage west of Mitchell were apparently burning some wood pallets around 3:45. “It got away from them in the wind conditions and started some refuse on fire,” said Morris. “The big concern was that it would jump the tracks and get into some grass and then near some buildings and that was taken care of.”
A Mitchell Fire Department grass rig stood by as staff used payloaders to dump dirt on the fire and cut it off from other areas.
Morris says H&R staff will monitor the fire and allow it to burn itself out.
Heavy black smoke from the fire reduced visibility for a time along Highway 16.
J.P. Skelly
