NE Wildfires Rage Across 740K Acres

This article was originally posted at 3:39 p.m. CDT on Monday, March 16. It was last updated with additional information at 4:24 p.m. CDT on Monday, March 16.

**

REDFIELD, Iowa (DTN) -- Wildfires in Nebraska, including one being the largest single fire in state history, continue to burn in seven counties. They have destroyed more than 740,000 acres of farm and grazing land and killed an 86-year-old woman who was trying to escape one of the fires.

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen declared a state of emergency in seven counties, and the fires have continued to spread into other counties as well. The counties in the declaration include Morrill, Garden, Arthur, Keith, Lincoln, Dawson and Frontier. These are major beef counties in the state and serve as a home to more than 700,000 head of cattle and calves.

In a news conference on Monday, Gov. Pillen stated that he has asked U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins for the emergency release of Conservation Reserve Program acres in Nebraska for grazing cattle due to so much grazing land being burned in the wildfire.

"We need this approval now, so we don't have to wait on the approval for two months," Pillen said. "These ranchers need the ground now to be able to calve cows. We need to figure out where to take the cows because this ecosystem (the burned area) won't support them."

While a lot of the Midwest received precipitation to help with drought conditions during the weekend, DTN Ag Meteorologist John Baranick said Nebraska only had a few showers, but nothing that really stands out to help increase soil moisture or lessen the risk of spreading wildfires.

"Unfortunately, two storm systems have moved through the region that significantly increased the winds across the region," he explained. "The first came on Thursday, March 12. Winds up and down the Plains were reported in the 60- to 70-mph range and started the run of wildfires that only got worse as another storm system with high winds blew through over the weekend, making the wildfire situation even worse."

FIREFIGHTING HELP COMES FROM AFAR

Pillen took an aerial tour of the burning area during the weekend; the flight included several other governmental officials and Lt. Colonel Scott Henrickson, chief of the joint staff for the Nebraska National Guard. Besides the work of the local firefighters in these areas, the Nebraska National Guard was deployed to assist in firefighting efforts.

According to incident updates and state briefings, firefighting crews have come from across Nebraska, as well as from Colorado, Iowa, South Dakota and Wyoming. Federal agencies have also become involved, including the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, and as previously stated, the National Guard.

The Morrill Fire is in Morrill, Garden, Arthur and Keith counties, burning over 572,000 acres, and is the largest single fire in Nebraska history. Next is the Cottonwood Fire in Dawson and Lincoln counties, covering about 122,000 acres. The Road 203 Fire is in Thomas and Blaine counties, burning nearly 36,000 acres, and farther north in Cherry County, the Anderson Bridge Fire is about 16,000 acres.

"We are working to get more resources into the state, but as we heard, there are multiple fires across multiple states," said Henrickson in a news release. "We are still working to see what is available and of course, bring that up in a unified effort here with the local emergency management team as well as our Nebraska Emergency Management Agency (NEMA)."

WEATHER NOT IDEAL TO EXTINGUISH FIRES

Pillen stressed the importance for residents to follow the instructions of the nearby authorities. "These fires present a significant and active danger, given current weather conditions," he said. "Anyone living within proximity to current wildfires are urged to heed communications issued by local authorities, including their respective county emergency management agencies."

Baranick said that while winds have diminished somewhat on Monday, that's not going to last. "Warmer air spreading into the region will increase the winds yet again for Tuesday, March 17. Though not nearly as strong as the last couple of storms, gusts in the 30- to 40-mph range are looking likely, with higher winds out toward the Wyoming border," he added.

A significant rise in temperatures by midweek will increase the wildfire risk not only across Nebraska but much of the Central and Southern Plains, he said.

IMPORTANT CATTLE AREA

The area burning in Nebraska is home to more than 700,000 head of cattle. Cattle markets don't seem affected yet, but this puts pressure on the need for good grazing land in a cattle-rich area.

DTN Livestock Analyst ShayLe Stewart said it may seem odd to see throughout Monday's trade the cattle complex traded higher, even though Monday marked the first day of the union strike at the JBS meatpacking plant in Greeley, Colorado.

"It's imperative that we remind ourselves that the futures complex is an anticipatory market, and it's supposed to account for events such as this when the information is shared -- and given the steep fall the futures complex has endured over the last two weeks -- I think it's safe to say that plenty of down pressure has been felt."

She said there could be some pressure seen in the days ahead, as it adds another level of volatility and chaos to the market.

Stewart said the other tragedy that needs to be discussed when looking at the cattle market is the sprawling wildfire in Nebraska.

"While we don't have a grasp yet of how many cattle have been lost in the fire, this is going to have a grave effect on the cow herd build-back. With the loss of forage, and unimaginable expenses going to be incurred to repair those ranges, ranches and cow herds -- the one conclusion that we can all be sure of is that this will delay the build-back," she added.

Nebraska Farmers Union President John Hansen said the needed precipitation to help fight the fires did not come during the weekend, and the three major fires showed zero percent containment as of Monday morning.

"Our firefighters are not only fighting the fires, they are fighting the cold, rough terrain, lack of resources, and exhaustion," he said. "Many hundreds of volunteer firefighters across the state have left their homes and workplaces to help their neighbors in their time of need."

A statewide burn ban issued by Gov. Pillen remains in effect until March 27.

Several donation and supply drop points have been organized to help farmers and ranchers in the Nebraska wildfire areas:

-- Nebraska Cattlemen Disaster Relief Fund

Please mail check to:

4611 Cattle Drive

Lincoln, NE 68521-4309

For any questions, please contact the Nebraska Cattlemen office at (402) 475-2333 or email disasterrelief@necattlemen.org.

-- Nebraska Hay and Forage Hotline

Phone (402) 471-4876

-- Farm Rescue

Apply for assistance: https://farmrescue.org/…

**

SUPPLY DROP POINTS

-- Bridgeport:

Hay and Fencing Supplies

Kraupie's Northport Lot

Del Ray Kraupie (308) 279-1692

-- Oshkosh:

Hay -- Oshkosh Truck Shop

Kirk Schoeneman (308) 241-0809

Fencing Supplies -- Oshkosh Lumber

Jordan Russell (308) 458-7470

-- Arthur:

Crusty's Feed Store (308) 764-2259

Jason (308) 264-7090

-- Ogallala:

Hay and Fencing Supplies

Ogallala Ag Supply

Patti (308) 280-0025

-- Hyannis:

Hay and Fencing Supplies

Grant County Fairgrounds

Wyatt Thurston (682) 262-0942

-- Gordon:

Hay and Fencing Supplies

Gordon Livestock Market

(605) 441-8544

**

TO SEE MORE ABOUT CARING FOR LIVESTOCK AFFECTED BY FIRES:

-- "Treating Cattle That Are Wildfire Survivors," https://www.dtnpf.com/…

--"After Wildfire: Livestock Care, Documentation, and Recovery for Nebraska Cattle Operations," https://ianrnews.unl.edu/…

**

TO ACCESS USDA RESOURCES, SUCH AS DISASTER PROGRAMS:

-- USDA Farm Service Agency Help: https://www.fsa.usda.gov/…

**

TO SEE MORE ABOUT DROUGHT IMPACT:

-- "Winter Featured Warmth and Drought Expansion in Many US Crop Areas," https://www.dtnpf.com/…

-- U.S. Drought Monitor released March 12, https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/…

Jennifer Carrico can be reached at jennifer.carrico@dtn.com

Follow her on social platform X @JennCattleGal

(c) Copyright 2026 DTN, LLC. All rights reserved.