On March 4 the dash cam in a Nebraska State Trooper’s vehicle recorded some interesting footage from the shoulder of Interstate 80 near Gothenburg as a wildfire approached.
This is the time of year we start to see grassfires across Nebraska.
This dash video from today near Gothenburg shows how quickly these fires can move.
Thankfully the trooper was aware of his surroundings, while moving traffic into the outer lane, and was able to get away. pic.twitter.com/iHPKnEYxfP
— Nebraska State Patrol (@NEStatePatrol) March 4, 2021
Thanks and a tip of the hat go out to Bob.
I-80 is a major trucking route and stays busy 24/7. They did eventually shut down the Interstate at the Brady Exit and rerouted traffic north to Highway 30. The video from NSP was early on during the fire.
https://www.ksnblocal4.com/2021/03/04/large-grass-fire-forces-closure-on-i-80/
Hi Steve. If there is just one patrol vehicle on-scene it is pretty difficult to affect a full stop shut-down safely on a heavily trafficked interstate(?) particularly with a very fluid and fast moving situation approaching head-on. Keeping traffic flowing is always a primary consideration. I once called in a medivac helicopter for an off-road accident adjacent to a primary two lane highway. When our local CHP arrived I told him I wanted to land the chopper on the highway for safety reasons. His chuckling reply? “You’re not closing my highway.” Experience suggests Highway Patrol can be quite possessive of “their” roads and know how best to control them. LR
I don’t know what compels law enforcement or fire departments to not immediately shut down a highway or freeway when a fire is right along a roadway like this. Inexperience, or an “oh well” attitude?