![Firefighters put water on the remains of an abandoned house that caught fire in Rosine after what officials believe was a train that was somehow causing fires all through Ohio County Thursday afternoon.]()
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![Firefighters put water on the remains of an abandoned house that caught fire in Rosine after what officials believe was a train that was somehow causing fires all through Ohio County Thursday afternoon.]()
Firefighters put water on the remains of an abandoned house that caught fire in Rosine after what officials believe was a train that was somehow causing fires all through Ohio County Thursday afternoon.[/caption]
A train traveling through Ohio County is to blame for a series of fires that burned from Beaver Dam to Horse Branch Thursday afternoon.
According to Ohio County Emergency Management Director Charlie Shields, Ohio County 911 Dispatch received a call around 2:30 p.m. about a grass fire along the railroad tracks by U.S. Highway 62 West in front of the Ohio County Firefighters Training Facility in Beaver Dam. That call was just the beginning, as more calls came into 911 Dispatch about several other fires along the same railroad track stretching all the way to Horse Branch.
Apparently, something was causing sparks to fly from a train heading west through Ohio County toward Louisville. The sparks ignited the grass beside the tracks and caused a series of fires to pop up along a five and a half mile stretch. Shields said the train, which belonged to Paducah & Louisville Railway (P & L), stopped just outside of Horse Branch for an inspection, but there was no explanation found for the sparks.
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![Flames from several different fires viewed from an overpass Thursday afternoon on Highway 505 near Rosine.]()
Flames from several different fires viewed from an overpass Thursday afternoon on Highway 505 near Rosine.[/caption]
In all, six fire departments were called out to battle the fires, including Rosine, Beaver Dam, Hartford, McHenry, Cromwell and Caneyville Fire Departments, along with three people from the Department of Forestry.
Due to the location of some of the fires, firefighters weren't able to get their apparatuses close enough to put the fires out. In those cases, firefighters battled the blazes by going into the woods and fighting the fires by hand.
To make matters worse, beside the railroad track in certain spots were stacks of new railroad ties P & L were going to use to replace the current ties. Several stacks of the railroad ties also caught fire. According to Shields, firefighters could not put these fires out, but they watched over the burning piles until the danger had passed. Some were still smoldering Friday afternoon.
At times there was zero visibility on U.S. Highway 62 East going toward Horse Branch, due to the smoke from the fires. Ohio County Sheriff's Deputies were called in to slow traffic down in these areas.
There were no injuries reported due to the fires and only one structure, an abandoned house in Rosine, was burned. Several structures, including a home on State Route 505, was within feet of a fire that had jumped the railroad track, but firefighters were able to put the fire out and save any other structure from being burned.
Later in the night the firefighters received some help from the weather.
"The rain really helped us out during the night because it was getting to a point where it was getting dark and dangerous for the guys to be in there," Shields said.
Shields gave Rosine Fire Chief Nick Woolen credit for keeping things cool during a chaotic situation.
"Nick did a very good job of getting everybody together and keeping everybody under control on the radio," Shields said.
Firefighters left the scene around 8 p.m. Thursday night.
[gallery columns="5" link="file" ids="18273,18274,18275,18279,18277,18278,18282,18276,18285,18286,18280,18283,18281,18284"]
Firefighters put water on the remains of an abandoned house that caught fire in Rosine after what officials believe was a train that was somehow causing fires all through Ohio County Thursday afternoon.[/caption]
A train traveling through Ohio County is to blame for a series of fires that burned from Beaver Dam to Horse Branch Thursday afternoon.
According to Ohio County Emergency Management Director Charlie Shields, Ohio County 911 Dispatch received a call around 2:30 p.m. about a grass fire along the railroad tracks by U.S. Highway 62 West in front of the Ohio County Firefighters Training Facility in Beaver Dam. That call was just the beginning, as more calls came into 911 Dispatch about several other fires along the same railroad track stretching all the way to Horse Branch.
Apparently, something was causing sparks to fly from a train heading west through Ohio County toward Louisville. The sparks ignited the grass beside the tracks and caused a series of fires to pop up along a five and a half mile stretch. Shields said the train, which belonged to Paducah & Louisville Railway (P & L), stopped just outside of Horse Branch for an inspection, but there was no explanation found for the sparks.
[caption id="attachment_18286" align="alignright" width="200"]
Flames from several different fires viewed from an overpass Thursday afternoon on Highway 505 near Rosine.[/caption]
In all, six fire departments were called out to battle the fires, including Rosine, Beaver Dam, Hartford, McHenry, Cromwell and Caneyville Fire Departments, along with three people from the Department of Forestry.
Due to the location of some of the fires, firefighters weren't able to get their apparatuses close enough to put the fires out. In those cases, firefighters battled the blazes by going into the woods and fighting the fires by hand.
To make matters worse, beside the railroad track in certain spots were stacks of new railroad ties P & L were going to use to replace the current ties. Several stacks of the railroad ties also caught fire. According to Shields, firefighters could not put these fires out, but they watched over the burning piles until the danger had passed. Some were still smoldering Friday afternoon.
At times there was zero visibility on U.S. Highway 62 East going toward Horse Branch, due to the smoke from the fires. Ohio County Sheriff's Deputies were called in to slow traffic down in these areas.
There were no injuries reported due to the fires and only one structure, an abandoned house in Rosine, was burned. Several structures, including a home on State Route 505, was within feet of a fire that had jumped the railroad track, but firefighters were able to put the fire out and save any other structure from being burned.
Later in the night the firefighters received some help from the weather.
"The rain really helped us out during the night because it was getting to a point where it was getting dark and dangerous for the guys to be in there," Shields said.
Shields gave Rosine Fire Chief Nick Woolen credit for keeping things cool during a chaotic situation.
"Nick did a very good job of getting everybody together and keeping everybody under control on the radio," Shields said.
Firefighters left the scene around 8 p.m. Thursday night.
[gallery columns="5" link="file" ids="18273,18274,18275,18279,18277,18278,18282,18276,18285,18286,18280,18283,18281,18284"]