HUNTINGTON, Ark. — A River Valley man is dead after being overcome by a brushfire, according to the Sebastian County Sheriff's Office.
Sebastian County dispatchers received a call around 11:30 a.m. Monday, Sept. 27, from Denna Strickland at a home on East Highway 252 in Huntington.
Denna told police that she and her husband, 62-year-old Preston Strickland, had been out earlier in the day brush hogging.
After taking a rest inside, Denna told investigators that she smelt smoke and walked outside to find her husband trying to put out a fire with a tarp. She says Preston told her to go hook up the water hose and that by the time she returned with the hose, Denna had lost her husband in the smoke and flames. A short time later, Denna found her husband lying down in the yard burned and unresponsive. She told police she tried CPR but was unsuccessful in her attempts.
Denna continued to try and put out the fire and called 911.
Once emergency crews arrived on the scene, Preston was pronounced dead.
His body has been taken to a local funeral home.
A burn ban was issued in Sebastian County and emergency managers say during dry spells, fires can start quickly and spread rapidly.
“We understand they can take off fast, rapidly, and spread in an area quicker than any other time during the year whenever we have these kinds of conditions," said Travis Cooper, Sebastian County Emergency Management.
Rural fire departments worked to extinguish the fire that grew to be around the size of a football field. The Sebastian County burn ban will continue until there is more rainfall and conditions arent as dry.
“We look at having burn bans in place, and why we have a county ordinance is to protect life and property. This incident in Sebastian county of a life lost is a tragic incident that we don’t want to have happen again," said Cooper.
Parts of the River Valley have been under a burn ban for nearly a week. Sebastian County Emergency Management stresses that no unnecessary fires should be set while the county remains under dry conditions.
Take a closer look at this tragic accident tonight on 5NEWS 4, 5 and 6.