Local firefighters helping fight wildfires in Kentucky

The eight Arkansas Forestry Division firefighters who traveled to Kentucky to help fight wildfires in the state are pictured with members of the Forest City Fire Department on Thursday, Nov. 10. (Courtesy of Katie West, Times Herald/Special to the News-Times)
The eight Arkansas Forestry Division firefighters who traveled to Kentucky to help fight wildfires in the state are pictured with members of the Forest City Fire Department on Thursday, Nov. 10. (Courtesy of Katie West, Times Herald/Special to the News-Times)

Two Union County men spent their weekends helping firefighters in Kentucky battle wildfires that have burned more than 15,000 acres of land since Oct. 1.

According to a press release issued by the Arkansas Department of Agriculture last Thursday, eight wildland firefighters working for the Ag Department's Forestry Division headed to Kentucky that day, including County Ranger Paul Franks and County Forester Tyler King of Union County.

"County rangers for the Arkansas Forestry Division supervise a crew of two Forest Rangers. County Rangers are wildland firefighters along with assisting the County Forester with forest management activities," said Ayden Massey, a public information officer for the Department of Agriculture.

Franks, a 10-year employee of the forestry division, lives in Junction City, while King, a three-year employee of the Forestry Division, lives in Calion.

At a press conference last Thursday, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said 52 wildfires were then actively burning across the state, including 20 that hadn't been contained. On Saturday, the Associated Press reported that 2,000 acres of the Daniel Boone National Forest in the eastern part of the state had been burned as a result of wildfires.

According to the Kentucky Department of Emergency Management, no serious injuries, deaths, evacuations or threats to residences have been reported as resulting from the wildfires.

The crew from Arkansas, which in addition to Franks and King included firefighters from Clark, Dallas, Searcy, Stone and Faulkner counties, set out last Thursday and were set to return Tuesday.

"The Arkansas crew will be involved in frontline fire suppression utilizing hand rakes, backpack blowers and UTV (utility vehicle) mounted pumpers," said Massey.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, as of Nov. 8, a large portion of Kentucky was considered to be in severe drought conditions, with most of the remainder in moderate drought conditions and a small portion considered abnormally dry. Most of the wildfires currently burning in the U.S. are in the eastern half of the country, with approximately 27 of the active wildfires on Tuesday located in Kentucky.

"Kentucky is experiencing drought and their emergency response resources are running thin," Wes McKinney, fire management officer for the Forestry Division, said in the Ag Department's press release. "They're seeing multiple fires over multiple days and are in need of support."

Massey explained that the Forestry Division employees were deployed to Kentucky as part of the Southeastern Interstate Forest Fire Protection Compact, which he said allows participating states to send wildland firefighters and resources across state lines to address wildfires.

"We are proud of our staff who volunteered to do hard, labor-intensive work to help safeguard the people of Kentucky," Arkansas State Forester Joe Fox said in the press release. "They are honored to use their training and expertise to provide assistance."

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