Chase County sees four fire calls in less than a week

The Imperial Volunteer Fire Department (IVFD) racked up the hours since last Wednesday, responding to four calls in less than a week.
Last Thursday around 11:44 a.m., IVFD, in addition to the Lamar Volunteer Fire Department, responded to a call near Lamar.
“It was a small fire,” IVFD Chief Doug Mitchell said.
The fire was in a wheat field that was already cut.
“It was a transformer pole that sparked and started that,” he added.
Mitchell estimated the fire affected three to four acres.
Friday had the IVFD respond to a larger fire around 3:52 p.m. near Enders.
That fire, on Chris and Annie Pursley’s property, had more damage than the one at Lamar, with 15-20 acres damaged.
“It was a pea field,” Mitchell said. “Part of it was cut, part of it was not.”
The fire was started by the combine, Mitchell said, but the specifics remain unclear.
“There was minimal damage to the combine,” he added. “I think they went back to picking afterwards.”
Mitchell said the fire at Pursleys could have been bad.
“If the wind would have been blowing it could have gone right across to the unpicked wheat field,” he said.
Wauneta and Benkelman fire departments were also called “because the fire looked so big,” Mitchell said. Wauneta did assist with about three trucks, but Benkelman was sent home.

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