EMERADO, N.D. – An afternoon fire Wednesday, April 28, destroyed an Oakville Township mobile home a few miles east of Emerado.
No one was injured in the blaze, which was fanned by strong winds, and also burned several outbuildings. The fire burned a small amount of grassland east of the residence, which was just north of the railroad tracks that run by the housing development.
The Emerado, Thompson, Manvel and Grand Forks Air Force Base fire departments, an Altru Health Systems ambulance, the Grand Forks County Sheriff's Office and a North Dakota Highway Patrol trooper responded to the fire, said Dave Stromberg, Grand Forks County Sheriff’s chief deputy.
Alan L. Thompson, the home’s owner, called to report the fire around 3:15 p.m., Stromberg said.
“I bet the flames were 25 feet high,” said Larry Ferguson, who lives a few doors down from Thompson in the rural housing development.
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“With the winds, it got into the grass and spread very quickly,” Stromberg said.
The North Dakota Highway Patrol trooper was the first to respond and helped Johnson’s neighbors fight the fire with garden hoses, Stromberg said.
By 6 p.m., the fire was contained and fire departments and emergency personnel were leaving the scene.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, Stromberg said.
