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Bryan Horwath / The Dickinson Press via AP
A firefighter examines the flames as a fire sweeps through Bucyrus, N.D., on Wednesday night.
When a grassfire destroyed most of tiny Bucyrus, N.D., this week, the "perfect firestorm" of conditions served as a reminder that the long-term drought, combined with unpredictable winds, makes for severe fire danger across the central U.S., even in the middle of autumn.
Four homes and 20 other structures were lost after the fire broke out Wednesday afternoon. Fanned by winds up to 70 mph, it consumed at least 6,000 acres and traveled 10 miles by Thursday morning, The Dickinson Press reported.
"This is like a nightmare," Linda Wiskus told The Dickinson Press. "I wouldn’t wish this on anyone. ... We had about 15 minutes to get what we could. I grabbed a safe, a pair of jeans and some socks — I didn’t have time to get anything else."
The cause of the fire has yet to be determined, but Bucyrus is in a county that's been in continued drought since October 2011, Adnan Akyuz, North Dakota's state climatologist, told NBC News. Conditions got even worse starting Oct. 2.
"When you combine warm, dry and windy conditions, it creates a perfect setting for elevated fire danger," Akyuz noted. Adding drought to that mix, he said, "makes it more dangerous conditions for fire."
"Red flag" fire warnings have been issued "frequently this summer and fall in the area," he added.
Located in southwest North Dakota, the county has also had the lowest amount of precipitation in the state over the last two months.
While about average for the last decade, the number of wildfires across the state this year is higher than the three previous years, which saw lots of rain and flooding, said Cecily Fong, a spokeswoman for the state's Department of Emergency Services.
"Typically, the southwest corner and western part of our state are more prone to wildfires, but they can really occur anywhere if we go into severe drought, which we think we may be doing now," she told NBC News.
A top meteorologist at the federal command post for fighting wildfires said the time of year, combined with the dry grass, wind and drought made for prime fire conditions in North Dakota.
PhotoBlog: Resident returns to destroyed home
"People burning leaves" this time of year is another worry, Ed Delgado, of the National Interagency Fire Center, told NBC News. But he was also hopeful the fire season would see a "very quick decline" as it gets colder and wetter.
Akyuz said putting out North Dakota's 2012 fire season "all depends on the snow cover."
"Our winter snow cover lasts from November through March," he added. "Even though it may be a dry winter, it is unlikely that the entire winter will be snow free."
For some of the 27 residents of Bucyrus, that's little comfort.
Evelyn and Mike Krug were among those who lost their home, The Dickinson Press reported. Asked what she and neighbors might do next, Evelyn shook her head and said only, "I don't know."
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They should have been doing controlled preliminary burns around the town to protect it.
.
If people are burning leaves and brush in or near town, then maybe they need to enforce a burn ban. In Texas each county has the authority to evaluate the weather and moisture conditions and tell its residents if it is okay to conduct outdoor burning. Just because people want to burn their leaves or brush piles in the fall doesn't mean they should. Sometimes months will go by before a burn ban is lifted because of improved conditions, but the ban can always be reinstated.
@v2011 - I agree with you 100%, with the drought conditions they are having there is absolutely no reason why there should not have been a ban in place against burning leaves or other trash outdoors. This practice presents enough of a hazard when you are not in a drought, when you are experiencing a long term drought it is just plain stupid and irresponsible to allow outdoor burning to be done. To allow the burning of leaves or anything else outdoors in the conditions they have been experiencing is grossly negligent. The article does not say that this is what started the fire and the fire may very well have been started by something else. However, they should institute a burn ban anyway to help reduce the likelihood of a recurrence of this kind of tragedy.
Enforce a burn ban? Hello, this town has only 27 people who probably know when anyone else flushes a toilet. Surrounding areas? How many people there? I guess no one learned how to compost those leaves... it's not like they're in an urban dwelling with no room.
I come from a farm family. Everything organic was composted - a polite way to say tossed over the hill. We never burned leaves in 100 years on that property.
@Savvy Shopper-4621457 It's nice to see you grew up on a farm, but apparently you left your reading skills on the farm. The article clearly says "The cause of the fire has yet to be determined" and then later on goes to say people burning leaves this time of year is another worry. Nowhere does it say the fire was started by burning leaves.
I don't understand why people like to brag on the internet about how earth conscious they think they are.
Perhaps mow / disk or plow.
A few more details in the story, or perhaps a better picture would help explain...
I would say the 70 mph winds were more of a factor than drought conditions--even normal moisture conditions would exhibit extreme fire behavior with 70 mph winds.
Just another example of how climate affects us and the importance of water. My thoughts and prayers go out to the town. We need to seriously talk about all the climate changes happening in the USA and just how are we going to deal with it.
First step is to change crops that we grow in this country. Crops like corn and cotton are wasteful, and can be easily replaced with hemp. Hemp is no nearly as wasteful as corn and cotton, and is much more useful.
there's no such thing as global warming
there's no such thing as global warming
there's no such thing as global warming
"But though the whole world turn to coal" (Richard Herbert), there's no such thing as global warming
Amen! Amen! Amen!
Fires burn,
Ground dries out,
Winds blow,
Rivers rise,
Snow falls,
This is the workings of Mother Nature.
Accept that it is bigger than any regulation!
The CO2 levels have nothig to do with it if your head is in the sand. Or your paycheck comes from a oil company.
Of course global warming had nothing to with the high winds...it happens every year when cold fronts come through.
But I wouldn't expect a union member or a son of the devil to know that.
Unions built this country and the middle class. It's people like you, Rex, that are ruining this country.
By the way, yes, high winds do come with cold fronts, but they also have been more prevalent with the changing climate. It doesn't take a genius to know that, just someone that knows how to read and has the comprehension skills to understand something other than fairy tales.
It probably wasn't caused by nature, probably just some smoker.
The ignition was maybe a smoker of other man man source . The tinder like dryness that was nature
Naw. Shooting is the new fire devil.
Amazing all the comments and yet no one has said anything about how WE could help out. Where we could send donations. No one even asked whether FEMA disaster would be involved. Everyone has a solution....after the fact. Way to go.!!!!!
Hello R. Woodward,
THANK YOU for thinking of people in this area. I do not live in this area, but know some who do. It has been devastating. Many people in the area are elderly. Here is how you can help, and THANK YOU! I have no direct connection with anyone in the area, and I am only posting this information for kind, considerate people like you who are interested in helping. THANK YOU!
____________________
A disaster relief fund has been established for victims of the fire in Bucyrus. Anyone who wants to make a contribution to help the fire victims can send it to the Bucyrus North Dakota Disaster Relief Fund, in care of Dakota Plains Federal Credit Union, 221 Main Street, P.O. Box 1020, Hettinger, North Dakota, 58639.
Source:
I grew up in North Dakota and spent more than half of my life there...I have never heard of Bucyrus. That has to be a first. My condolences to the residents who lost their homes and a good portion of their community. I live in Colorado now and wildfires are a terrible thing.
Bucyrus is located a few miles north and west
It's in the southwestern part of North Dakota. Hope you remain fire free in Colorado! Blessings from ND to CO!
Prior to the recent fires in NW MN, officials had taken steps to move extra fire-fighting resources to the region due to concerns that with hunting seasons starting and the extended dry weather (something like 6 inches of rain this summer, mostly in just 2 rain events and none since around July 4) there was greater risk of fire. But NW MN does have forests, SW ND is mostly rangeland. The winds were part of a weather system that has brought needed rain (a couple of inches) to the eastern part of the state (where foundations are starting to crack due to soil shrinkage because of the drought)--but sounds like they didn't get the rain. As remote and sparsely-populated as the region is, I wonder what response was even possible.
Yep, make the jump and blame man. Like there's never been weather, drought, hurrricanes, floods before. The unwashed masses always looking for the boogey man because they have never been taught to think beyong the events in their lifetimes.... liberals are funny...
Yeah, conservatives have no boogey men. ( Blacks, immigrants legal and illegal, terrorists, foreigners, different cultures, different life styles and religions, government, communism, socialism, atheism, evolution, liberals, democrats, unions, science, Mexicans, Asians, Africans, non gun owners, enviromentalists, feminists, educational institutions, opposing views, moslems, taxes, demons, health care, sin, hedonism,sex, pleasure, fun. Enough just realized I could go on all day !
This article had nothing to do with politics. None, nada, zilch, etc but you retards try to make everything political and it's sickening.
Jeff, I agree and apologize. I fell for the trap. I have been saying the same thing. A story could be about a new planet found in some far away galaxy, and some dork puts an Obama slam. Then some other dork puts a Romney or Ryan slam. In the words of the late, Ed McMahon, " you are correct sir ''.
Jim,
It takes guts to take responsibility for what you posted - I respect that. It's a good thing! :-)
Just FYI - not everyone in this state is a die hard conservative. Generally speaking, the eastern part of the state is pretty liberal, while the western part remains very conservative. But that's generally speaking. We actually have a good mix of both.
Personally, I would like to see one thing. After the election, whoever doesn't win the presidency should throw their support and clout behind the elected president, and work to break the bi partisan gridlock that is killing this country. No one person is at fault. Congress members have plenty to be flogged for too! :-) Hey, sorry to get off topic.
Thanks for thinking of the people who were devastated by the fire. Best wishes.
I think that the person who brought Politics into this discussion forgot one thing. IT IS OBAMAS FAULT.
it is political genius the GOP has denied climate change from day one - now hottest year ever . drought , severe storms , thousands of tornadoes wildfires are common place - in the GOP/FOX bubble not happening- .. you are all pawns
another gift from the good people of the GOP - DENY CLIMATE CHANGE as the affects destroy the planet -............. then praise jesus and deny again -
Critical times hard to deal with, will be here.
Sorry but this whole report is wrong. First of all ND is not in a drought. It has had it's same average amount of rain fall it always has. Second, most of the grass that grows naturally during the summer was already dead because the season was over, and no amount of rain would have changed that.
The reason it burned so hot and fast was because all that dead grass from years and years of piling up under the tree belts, and under the new prairie grass is what happens in nature.
Just think of it like your little old piece of front yard that you mow each year and remove all those clipping. If you did not mow it twice a week for 4 months, for years and years, and years, how much dead grass would be under the new green each year, even if it was a normal or above average wet year.
All it would need is just a couple of weeks without rain, (and that is not a drought), and you have a 50 mile hr. wind whip thorough for one day and a spark was thrown in the mix and it would take just minutes to become a fast burning, hot, grass fire.
That little town sits in the middle of a prairie in the middle of practically nowhere. When the railroad came though back in the late 1800's they needed all those little towns. But they have all dried up because they are no longer needed.
It is not common but not uncommon either for a fire to sweep through these little towns as there is so many vacant building that are just dry timber waiting to go up in smoke.
Sure it was a tragedy, but without the people needed to keep the prairie at bay, it happens.
But my question is: Is anyone from the flood ravaged New Orleans going to send them money and support like all the people in ND did when they had a disaster?
Just because it wasn't on the same scale, they should be the first ones to jump on any disastor and offer support. Thier personal loss is just as much to them. Where's the bandwagon? My guess, not going to happen.
Uh, this area IS in a drought. Parts of the state (southwest and west) are all in drought. The central part of the state and eastern part of the state are NOT in drought. The conditions vary a great deal in a span of about 40 miles.
The cause of the fire is unknown. There is only speculation at this point. We all hope it wasn't caused by human nature, but there's a good chance of it. Fires happen - it's part of life in the plains.
I can tell you 60-70 mph winds that day (and the day before) did NOT help. That's what made the fire spread so fast.
Many people in these tiny towns are elderly and have lived there all their lives. It's sad, but ND folks are tough. They will survive! A big THANK YOU to those who expressed concern, empathy and wish to help. Those qualities are too rare these days... so again, thank you!
The entire state of North Dakota is in a drought, ranging from moderate to extreme.
http://www.drought.gov/drought/content/products-current-drought-and-monitoring-drought-indicators/us-drought-monitor
Most of the mid-west central and western United States are in various degrees of drought conditions.
@Steven100 Your whole post is bull crap.
Well said, Jeff!