Reno and Harvey County firefighters were battling a large grass fire northeast of Hutchinson, and strong winds were spreading the fire to the east. Emergency management officials were conducting mandatory evacuations in the area. A Fire Warning was issued by the National Weather Service for eastern Reno and western Harvey counties.
The grass fire broke out early Saturday afternoon near Buhler Road and 4th Avenue. Reno County officials closed 4th Avenue and they were evacuating homes from 39th to U.S. Highway 50 from Buhler Road to Burmac Road.
In Harvey County, evacuations were being ordered from Highway 50 to Northwest 48th between Woodbury and Sandhill Road. Crews were also working on grass fires in the Newton area.
Crews in Butler County were also working on a large grass fire near Southwest 70th and Southwest Stone Gap Road, and another fire was reported near Andover.
Firefighters were also called to grass fires in the Wichita area during the day. Dry and windy conditions created a high fire danger for Saturday, and a Red Flag Warning was issued for south central Kansas.
