Hastings Rural firefighters help fight Crawford wildfire

CRAWFORD, Neb. (KSNB) - Two Hastings volunteer firefighters joined in the effort to fight the large wildfire burning in the panhandle.

On September 13, a wildfire broke out five miles southwest of Crawford and grew. The incident required requests from a State Level as it was designated a Type 3 incident.

The State Fire Marshal’s Office put out an urgent request Friday afternoon to all fire departments in the state for manpower and equipment to fight the fire burning southwest of Crawford.

Hastings Rural Fire Chief put the call out to his crew. With little notice, two answered the call and got on the road around 1 a.m. Saturday.

Firefighters Jay Kort and Mitch Linder drove the six hours to Crawford in the department’s brush truck. They arrived on scene around 6 a.m. Saturday and immediately got to work, fighting a wildfire in an unfamiliar location and difficult conditions.

The two then turned around and arrived home safely early Sunday morning.

Adams County Emergency Management appreciates the efforts of Hastings Rural Fire Department and firefighters Kort and Linder for their dedication of not only keeping Adams County safe, but also the State of Nebraska.