Monday evening, at 6:15 PM, a fire was reported in Pennington County roughly 3 miles SW of Rapid City, SD burning at an estimated 30-40 acres. The blaze is being called the First Thunder Fire and the cause- as of Tuesday- was still unknown.
Speaking with Cecilia Lipa with the Black Hills National Forest on Tuesday afternoon, KCSR learned that the fire has now grown to 100 acres and is still at 0% containment.
“There’s about 100 people on the ground fighting this fire right now,” said Lipa, who’s been assigned as the public information officer on the First Thunder Fire.
Lipa also explained that although no evacuation has been ordered yet, “pre-evac warnings” are in effect for residents of the area. These pre-evacuations are precautionary measures that mean residents need to be prepared to leave at a moment’s notice.
Despite no evacuations in place yet, some road closures have already been issued. The roads closed as of Tuesday include Norseman, Victoria Lake, and Taylor Ranch Roads.
Lipa also says the Forest Service hopes for cooler temperatures and weakening winds in the coming days to aid in the containment of the wildfire.
If anyone has questions about evacuations the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office has information available by visiting their Facebook page of the same name.
Otherwise, the public is encouraged to call Great Plains Fire Information at (605) 923-8551 for the most current news on the First Thunder Fire.
This is a developing story and KCSR will provide updated information as it is received.