The Anderson Creek Fire which straddles the line between Oklahoma and Kansas, began last week in Oklahoma and spread north to Kansas. Oklahoma Forestry Services says the fire has burned almost 400,000 acres of prairie and ranch land in three counties across two states.
The Anderson Creek Fire is described as the largest in Kansas history. Oklahoma Forestry Services says 370 firefighters are battling the blaze which consists of tall grass, brush and timber. The communities of Alva, OK and Medicine Lodge, KS are being threatened by this fire. Currently it is estimated at 40 percent containment for the portion of the fire in Woods County, Okla. Kansas officials are reporting the fire to be 31 percent contained in Barber County and 90 percent contained in Comanche County.
This natural-color satellite image was collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard the Aqua satellite on March 23, 2016. Actively burning areas, detected by MODIS’s thermal bands, are outlined in red. NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team. Caption: NASA/Goddard, Lynn Jenner