Firefighters battle huge grass fire near Nimmons

Firefighters from several area departments responded to a location along the St. Francis River levee southeast of Nimmons Tuesday afternoon, to battle a grass fire of undetermined origin.

The blaze, which apparently began in an abandoned building between the levee and river, was compounded by dry conditions and a prevailing north wind. By the time the fire was extinguished, well after sunset, it had spread nearly a mile.

Firefighters from Greenway received the initial call concerning the blaze, which came in around 2:30 p.m. They responded to the scene, and later received mutual aid from the Piggott and Rector departments. By 4 p.m. firefighters conceded that the blaze was too difficult to handle with their resources, and personnel from the Arkansas Forestry Commission were summoned from Jonesboro.

Although the fire spread well south of the original blaze, damage was restricted to the building where it first started and one other abandoned structure. There were no reports of injuries to any of the firefighters involved in the effort. At last report the investigation into the cause of the blaze continued.