It may be mid-January, but conditions in the region are dry enough that a human-caused grass fire burned a little over an acre yesterday at Wind Cave National Park. No structures were threatened.
New Superintendent Leigh Welling says 10 staffers at Wind Cave and Custer State Park responded through South Dakota Wildland Fire with 3 Type-6 engines at 3:13 and had the blaze controlled in a little over two hours.
Welling says the fire shows that dry conditions persist, regardless of the season, and is a reminder to exercise caution when using equipment and to be diligent about watching burn piles.