Firefighters from multiple fire departments continued to work on containing a wildfire in Banner County Wednesday.
Banner County Fire Chief Tim Grubbs said that part of the challenge in battling the Coulter Fire 2 is the rough terrain, with the fire situated in a canyon on the Coulter Ranch. As of Wednesday morning, the fire was at 60% containment.
As of 8 p.m. Wednesday, Banner County Fire Chief Tim Grubbs told the Scottsbluff Star-Herald that he estimated that the fire south of McGrew had damaged an estimated 45 acres, including areas of the Coulter Ranch, property that sits in the Wildcat Hills about a half-mile west of the Morrill County line.
The fire, called the Coulter Fire 2 is in rough terrain, he said, which makes battling it difficult. The fire “held overnight within established containment lines, with no additional increase in size.” As of Wednesday morning, he put the fire at 60% containment.
Planned actions for Wednesday included reinforcing containment lines, patrolling the fire perimeter and handline construction across the bottom of the canyon in the most inaccessible terrain.
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A Banner County fire engine is shown on scene at the Coulter Fire 2, which Banner County Fire Chief Tim Grubbs estimated had burned about 45 acres.
Firefighters had been dispatched to the fire at about 12 p.m. Tuesday. In addition to Banner County, he said, current resources assigned to the scene were Lyman Fire, Scottsbluff Rural, Gering, Bridgeport and Minatare-Melbeta fire departments. Region 22 Emergency Management also remained on scene.
It’s probable that the cause of the fire was lightning, however, Grubbs said it is under investigation at this point.
A SEAT plane drops retardant over the Coulter 2 fire Tuesday afternoon.
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