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Finney County continues local emergency after sandhills wildland fire; air support credited
Summary
Finney County commissioners on March 3 approved a resolution continuing a local state of emergency after a multijurisdiction wildland fire that moved from Haskell through Kearny into Finney County. Emergency officials said air tankers and county crews contained the blaze with no reported loss of life or crop damage.
Finney County declared that a local state of emergency will remain in effect following a weekend wildland fire that moved from Haskell County into Kearny County and into the county’s sandhills, county emergency staff told the Board of County Commissioners on March 3.
Paul Roesley, Finney County emergency manager, said crews used four aircraft and county equipment to control the fire. “We had 4 aircraft that assisted us, so they were able to get it down,” Roesley said. He reported the incident wrapped up about 7 p.m. Saturday and that there were “no loss of life, no equipment damage” and, to his knowledge, no cropland was burned.
The board unanimously approved a resolution continuing a local emergency declaration for Finney County, adopting language that the conditions “endanger the public financial stability, health, safety and welfare of persons within the borders of Finney County.” The resolution makes the county eligible to coordinate local response and to pursue state or federal assistance as allowed by law.
Commissioners and staff discussed the fragile nature of the sandhills and post-fire erosion risks. Roesley and other speakers urged property owners in the burned area to take precautions because the loss of vegetative cover increases erosion and site instability. Public works and county fire resources were credited with supporting on-the-ground operations; Roesley described coordination with counterparts in Haskell and Kearny counties during the response.
The resolution directs continued application of local disaster-response plans while the declaration is in effect and authorizes county staff to seek assistance and guidance consistent with state and federal programs. No additional funding or specific recovery program was adopted at the meeting; staff said follow-up on recovery needs will be handled through routine disaster-recovery channels.
The county clerk recorded the resolution as approved by the board; commissioners took no additional immediate fiscal actions at the March 3 meeting. The emergency manager and public-works staff remain the county’s contact points for recovery coordination and for advising landowners in the burned area.
