I generally don’t pay much attention when forecasts call for high wind gusts. My life doesn’t include many outdoor activities. Despite being indoors at the newspaper office Saturday, I did notice those high winds. The flag at the Moose Lodge was whipping around the flagpole and dust was flying from the gravel parking area across the street. The wind even blew our rubber entrance mat into the parking lot.
The scanner was going off, too. I heard about a fire to the west of Alva along Highway 14. It seemed to be difficult to control in the high winds, and units from other areas were being asked to respond. Then the Alva Fire Department was called to a second fire south of town along Noble Street. While they were at that location, there was a report of another possible fire to investigate. Then someone called about a downed power line in an alley in Alva. It turned out the downed line wasn’t hot; it was a TV cable. Eventually everything was under control except the Highway 14 fire which took longer to contain.
Curious about the wind speeds, I checked the Oklahoma Mesonet for the top wind gusts on Saturday. Alva hit 58 mph, which seemed to be a tie for third highest. The top wind gust was on the north edge of Woods County where 63 mph was recorded at May Ranch. Freedom registered a 55-mph gust while Cherokee had a 51. There were high gusts listed in the Oklahoma panhandle as well.
The next day, everything seemed to be under control in Woods County. However, a fire continued to spread in Woodward County. Numerous fire departments sent help to that area. On Saturday, the state fire service was reporting the 57 Fire in Woodward County was 0% contained and had burned an estimated 5,000 acres. On Monday morning, the report showed the fire was 45 percent contained with 5,291 acres burned.
Sadly, the Woodward County fire is believed to have begun as a prescribed burn. Although I don’t have much reason to worry about high winds, if you’re someone who uses prescribed burns to clear land, it would be wise to check the forecast. On Saturday, the state emergency operations center had received eight fire reports from six counties.
The Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management is asking residents impacted by the fires to report damage to their property at damage.ok.gov. Reporting damage helps local and state emergency managers to better coordinate response and recovery efforts. Residents can report damage to homes, business or agriculture through the online survey.
Two volunteer firefighters from Mooreland were injured in the Woodward County fire. Here’s what the Mooreland Fire Department said on their Facebook post Sunday:
The Mooreland Volunteer Fire Department would like to thank the community for their thoughts, prayers and well wishes in regards to our two firefighters who were injured during a wildland fire in the southern part of Woodward County on April 6, 2024.
Firefighters Jared Brittain and Max Clark sustained burns when their firetruck was overrun by flames.
Clark had a burn on his left arm and is expected to be released from the hospital today.
Brittain has burns on both arms, head and face area that are more substantial in nature and will take time and medical treatments to heal.
Your thoughts, prayers and well wishes are much appreciated by our fire department and community.
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