Video taken by Kristen Edgington showed a group of horses running from the Davis Fire, south of Reno, Nevada. The fire was estimated to have burned nearly 6,000 acres as firefighters worked towards full containment.
RENO, Nev. – A massive fire that burned nearly 6,000 acres in western Nevada forced a herd of horses to safer ground, and their excursion was captured on video.
Video taken by Kristen Edgington showed the group of animals running along a roadway south of Reno with a plume of smoke from the Davis Fire in the distance.
“This is crazy,” Edgington can be heard telling the driver of the car as dozens of horses trotted in the brush next to the roadway.
During the height of the fire, authorities reported more than 700 personnel were assigned to the blaze, which was thought to have destroyed over a dozen structures.
Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo signed a state of emergency declaration due to the Davis Fire’s impact on residents of Washoe County.
A massive fire that burned nearly 6,000 acres in western Nevada forced a herd of horses to safer ground, and their excursion was captured on video.
(Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District / FOX Weather)
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Firefighters said the combination of the winds and the dry terrain caused the fire to move erratically south of Reno.
“They’re going to go somewhere, right? Poor babies are probably in the fire,” Edgington’s companion can be heard saying in the video.
A local tourism group estimated there are 70,000 wild horses in the Reno-Tahoe area which have adapted to eating grasses and other vegetation.
According to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor, the entire state of Nevada was dealing with unusually dry conditions with around 33% officially in drought conditions, which can cause smaller plants to dry up.
During a prolonged drought, the fire danger typically increases, keeping firefighters busy.
(FOX Weather)
At least one firefighter was injured while battling the Davis Fire.
A GoFundMe page identified the firefighter as Alex Aldana, a 27-year veteran of the force.
“During the Davis Fire, Alex suffered a potentially career/life-altering eye injury while helping protect homes in the St. James Village area. His crew was quick to render aid, and the medical support put in place through the Incident Management Team quickly got him to definitive care,” the GoFundMe page reads.
Organizers have already raised more than $50,000, which is expected to help the Reno Fire Department firefighter and his family.
Investigators have not said who or what is believed to have started the blaze, but its origins have been traced to an area around a large regional park between Lake Tahoe and Reno.
Map of the Davis Fire
(FOX Weather)