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Wildfire Near Buffalo River 100 Percent Contained

NEWTON COUNTY (KFSM) — A wildfire near the Buffalo River in Newton County is 100 percent contained as of Tuesday morning (Dec. 12). Firefighters were work...

NEWTON COUNTY (KFSM) -- A wildfire near the Buffalo River in Newton County is 100 percent contained as of Tuesday morning (Dec. 12).

Firefighters were working to extinguish the fire that began blazing near Boxley Valley and Kingston along Highway 21 near the Buffalo River on Sunday (Dec. 10).

Officials said the fire was near the Whiteley Creek area, north of Whitaker Point, also known as Hawksbill Crag, in the Buffalo Wilderness Area.

“There’s a lot of fuel up there. It’s pretty treacherous up there, it’s hard to walk, just a lot of brush down. A lot of dead trees that are catching on fire also,” said Ponca volunteer firefighter Steve McAdams.

McAdam’s was one of the first on the scene. He said there hasn’t been a fire of this size in the area in a long time.

“We had just talked last week about how lucky we had been with not having any and this happened and there are a bunch around the county,” he said.

The Buffalo National River roughly estimates around 450 acres have burned. And while the fire isn’t completely contained they do have a line around it. Luckily, there have been no injuries or damage to any property. McAdams said as both a firefighter and a property owner this is a scary situation.

“You really have to worry about it because of where we live. Myself, I try to concentrate on leaf blowing around the house  and keeping it away the best we can and not burning anything,” he said.

Officials across the state are asking residents to use extreme caution as fire danger levels continue to increase.

The cause of the blaze is under investigation.

There are several burn bans throughout Arkansas, you can keep track of them by visiting the Arkansas Forestry Commission's website.

Wildfire Near Buffalo River 100 Percent Contained

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