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Horrible horrible news....fire

kolanuraven

kolanuraven

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Jul 27, 2005
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Last nite about 1AM my phone rang....of course that time of nite it CAN'T be good news.

A buddy of mine in Hay Springs NE was calling. Seems there was a fire near Chadron NE last nite that was a doosie! He had about 300 head of steers on some land near town, got a call FIRE, he took off and right now no one knows what's become of the cattle.

Seems there were in a draw/box canyonand hard as the guys tried , the fire, smoke, and excitement must've drove the steers nutty and they could not get them out of the canyon. The fire apparently moved so fast that some of the guys barely got out and horses have singed tail hair they were working so close.

The slurry bombers got it stopped before it got Chardron State. My buddy is going out early today, Sat., loaded with meds in case any survived and plenty of ammo to finish off any that are maimed.

This guys was working on a wing and prayer anyway.....IF...IF the worst comes true in this, which it seems it will, he's broke. I mean he's OVER and done. One fire will have wiped out him out totally.
 
Absolutely horrible. Prayers are with all that are fighting and living with the horrors of fire.
 
Thanks guys. When I hear something else from the front lines I'll post. Will be a long day, even for me on this side of the Mississippi.
 
That's awful, kola. There were more terrible fires just miles from us again yesterday. Haven't heard what how big the loss from these were yet, but our whole country is a tinderbox just waiting to explode into flames and every cloud that goes over seems to contain dry lightening.

There is a major fire south of us near Piedmont that has destroyed several dwellings and caused mass evacuations. So far no one has been killed that I know of.

Our fire fighters are exhausted, our resources are nearly depleted, and we haven't even moved into what is our usual fire season yet. Our governor has called from us to pray for rain and you better believe we've been doing just that.
 
I don't have any news of what they found ....but I'll know by tonite for sure.

When MB called me , eventhough it was 1AM for me....I instantly knew it was trouble when I heard the first word come out of his mouth.

Yeah..if it's as bad as he suspects....this will probably financially do him in. He was really just starting up a cattle/feedlot business and had poured every penny he had into it....and now this.

It's a mess for sure!
 
Prayers for courage to keep on going .........

I know all too well the loss of just about everything and starting over with nothing~ no money, no job, and only part of my family.
Kolan tell your friend to keep hope alive at all cost. That is the only thing that will get him out of bed in the morning and face the day till he sees the beauty and the reason to keep on going.
Maybe one or three days of pity party is needed but then you have to pick up and fake it till you make it. It gets easier to get up and smile and laugh again......
 
That is very bad news about MB's steers. Maybe they got deep into a ravine so the fire could pass over their heads.
Those fires sound horrendous in the Chadron area. It is a beautiful part of Nebraska, but the trees and canyons that make it so pretty also make it hard to fight fire. The wind blew briskly yesterday and today. It is welcome here to turn the windmills, but it would make fighting fire much more difficult.

Hope MB gets through this ordeal as unscathed as possible. It would sure put a person to the test. We will keep him in our prayers.
 
8:52 PM Ga Time....just got off the phone with MB. He lost about 106 steers out of 310 in the Spotted Tail fire that is in and about Chadron. He could loose more as the days go on due to the stress and smoke inhalation problems.

He says he's discouraged & exhausted but alive and broke now, but it will be whatever it will be. He was really too tired for too many details . He's also got 2 horses that are in pretty bad shape...one from smoke and another that got frantic and got cut up pretty bad.

I was saying that it could have been worse, all 300+ dead...but he could not seem to hear that at this time...all he was hearing is that he lost about 106!!

Says a neighbor lost 200 pairs! The critters that were dead or dying we so deep in the canyons/wash that they just had to shoot'em and leave'em. He said even the gophers were actually "fried" in their holes.

That's the latest!


P.S. Soapweed.....MB said to tell you Hello! ...... and thanks to all here for the good wishes even though he's a complete stranger to you'all..
 
Thanks, Kola, hopefully that's all he lost. When you're in the thick of it, it is hard to think **positive**. Guess that's why our "family" here on Ranchers.net is a good outlet for frustration plus most here on Ranchers care, have been there and done that.

Keep us posted!!!!!
 
Sorry to hear of the loss of the steers. It's especially hard to lose them right when it's about time to convert them to cash. The cattle business is always a test on fortitude, and nothing ever seems to be easy. Like my cousin always says, "Anything that doesn't kill you makes you a better person." Tell MB our hearts go out to him.

It has been a very hot day in this area, with a high of 106 degrees and a fairly stout southeast wind. Right now, at almost 8 o'clock in the evening, it is still 94 degrees. There was a fire about 25 miles south of here when a hay baler caught fire. Sounds like on Tuesday the high will only be 81 degrees. I can hardly wait.
 
We drove up by the Rudluf fire yesterday as we have pairs up there. The fire looked to be four to six miles away so were sitting on pins and needles watching for a wind shift. It was so out of control that they had to pull out and stop figting it.
 
kolanuraven: Please tell you friend to keep his chin up. As Lazy Ace and I know, it's hard, and you almost have to force yourself to do so. Also, please tell him that he is in our thoughts and prayers.

balingwire: I am sorry to hear your pairs are in the the fire's path. You too are in our thoughts and prayers. Please take care of yourself and be safe. Please remember that your/human life is worth more than that of beast. I hate saying that, and it is awfully hard for me to say, but it is. We had to remind ourselves of that Friday night, and thankfully we saved all livestock without human loss.

Cheers for rain, and no fire---

TTB :wink:
 
MB was gonna go out today and see what he could do to help the fire fighters, now that his critters are out of the way.

He'll either haul others cattle or tote water, whatever is needed worst.

Said he was too old to be on the front lines but he could hold the back end pretty well.

He was pretty low last nite, as to be expected, but now he's starting to look forward to the new green grass that will emerge from all this. It seems that area had not be allowed to burn for a LONG time and the fuel layer had built up.

He's a tough ol S () B and will make it....but it's a mental hit for anyone to see something like that.
 
So sorry to hear of the cattle that were lost in the fires.
What a horrible thing to have happen. And no one knows
who or what will be next.

Were those yearlings on private ground, forest service or BLM,
kola? I wonder if there isn't some type of reimbursement that he
can get. Seems like, in the fire a couple of years ago south of
us or between us and Tap, there was some reimbursment to the ranchers
but I'm not sure what. It would be worth looking into. And perhaps
Tap knows. It was forest service land, I THINK. I could find out, if
needed.

Stay safe, everyone!!

80 degrees here this morning at 8 am. It was a cool morning
yesterday. A real gift to a friend who was working his cattle.
 
FH...he told me that they were grazing on leased land on the Chadron State Park.

I tried to ask him about some type of assistance etc that he could apply for as I am sure there is something .....but he could not hear me as all he was seeing was about $100K gone up in smoke.

Maybe tomorrow or the next day....he'll be settled down enought to think and listen.
 

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