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A firefighting helicopter passes over the Aristocrat Fire as a crew watches from below, August 2020. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)
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A couple years late, but here is the next wildfire in the near-Chadron series. After the
Dawes and Sioux County Complex in 2006 and the Region 23 Complex in 2012, I figured we were on a six-year cycle, and wondered how crazy 2018 would be. Turns out the weather was biding its time, and here we are in 2020 with dry conditions and lightning. The Aristocrat Fire (I will fix incorrect information as I find correct information), named for
Aristocrat Peak in the Nebraska National Forest, apparently got started from one of the many lightning strikes from the evening of August 27. On August 28, we were treated to smoke over C-Hill, but so far not as much smoke as in 2006. The wind was more from the north and west on August 28, keeping the fire away from Chadron, but threatening any number of homes and structures that are dotted through the national forest.
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Sunset and dust over Dawes County, Nebraska, August 2020. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)
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Smoke from the Aristocrat Fire south of Chadron, Nebraska, August 2020. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)
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Clouds pass by the moon, August 2020. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)
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Sunset over Crow Butte, August 2020. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)
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Sunset over Chadron, Nebraska, August 2020. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)
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A firefighting plane, part of the response to the Aristocrat Fire south of Chadron, Nebraska, passes by the moon and Jupiter, August 2020. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)
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Small fires and burnt areas dot a portion of the hills south of Chadron, Nebraska. This is part of the area affected by the Aristocrat Fire, August 2020. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)
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Chadron, Nebraska, just after sunset, August 2020. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)
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