Fire crews made significant progress on two major western Nebraska wildfires Tuesday, while remaining prepared for new fire starts as dry conditions persist across the region.
The Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team 2 reports containment has increased to 84 percent on the Ashby Fire and 85 percent on the Minor Fire, both nearing full containment after days of active firefighting.
Operations Section Chief Nathan Hallam said crews were able to build on earlier gains, though a few challenges remain.
“We still have two small areas of uncontained fire line on the northern ends of both of those,” Hallam said. “One of them on the Ashby we have some buried heat on the north side of that. And then over on the Minor Fire, we're not able to contain that line yet because of access.”
Both fires—36,004 acres for Ashby and 14,082 acres for Minor—are now largely secured, with only isolated hotspots continuing to smolder within the fire perimeters. Fire managers say smoke may still be visible at times, but activity is expected to remain limited.
As containment nears completion, officials say staffing levels on the fires will be adjusted to match conditions, allowing more crews to shift toward rapid response for any new wildfires.
The Cottonwood Fire, which burned more than 129,000 acres, remains 100 percent contained. Crews continue to monitor and extinguish interior flare-ups where unburned vegetation remains.
Hallam said recent efforts have significantly reduced visible fire activity.
“I'm happy to say there was no smoke showing on that at the end of the shift,” he said, after crews completed additional mop-up operations.
Elsewhere, firefighters avoided what could have been a busy night. Despite high winds and the threat of dry lightning, no new fires required response from state resources.
“We really dodged the bullet last night with those high winds,” Hallam said. “We did not have any new starts throughout all four of the zones that we needed to respond and assist with.”
Resources that had been assisting on the Johnson Hills Fire near Bertrand have now been released as that fire reaches near full containment.
Fire managers continue to pre-position crews across Nebraska—including in Alliance, Ogallala, North Platte, Broken Bow and Columbus—to ensure quick response times if new fires ignite.
Even with cooler temperatures Tuesday following a cold front, officials warn the fire danger is far from over. Afternoon highs are expected around 50 degrees, with humidity dropping into the teens and gusty winds continuing.
Hallam said dry vegetation remains a major concern despite slightly improved weather conditions.
“Your brush and timber is extremely dry in this country,” he said. “So if we get fire established in that brush timber type fuel, you're still going to have rapid fire growth.”
Fire officials are urging residents to remain cautious, avoid activities that could spark a fire, and report any new fires immediately by calling 911.