On Thursday, Oct. 13, a huge grass fire was sparked just a couple miles west of Woonsocket. With the incredibly dry weather the area has been currently experiencing, combined with the terribly windy day on Thursday, the conditions were just right for a fire to get out of control quickly. However, with the help of two other fire departments and some local farmers, the Town and Country Fire District of Woonsocket was able to contain the blaze into just one field and keep it from doing horrific damage. 

According to Town and Country’s Fire Chief, Travis Coulthard, what started the fire is still in question, but there was no machinery involved, as was reported by bystanders. The misconception of what was burning most likely came from the incredible amount of smoke that spewed from the flames. Coulthard credits this to the terribly dry conditions the area is suffering from right now. The smoke was so thick and massive, that traffic along SD Highway 34 was impeded and had to be controlled by members of the Sanborn County Sheriff’s Office, and the Woonsocket Elementary students who were out for recess had to be summoned back into the building due to the poor air quality the smoke was creating.

…Read on and see an additional picture in this week’s issue of the Sanborn Weekly Journal!