Grass fire chars 120 acres

The Clovis Fire Department battled a grass fire Wednesday that charred 120 acres but resulted in no structures lost or injuries.

Battalion Chief David Burress said the blaze occurred off of State Highway 209 on the south side of County Road 16, with the call being dispatched at 3:07 p.m.

“How the fire started is unknown,” Burress said. “But there were some pretty good winds. Luckily someone had plowed next to the area where the fire happened, otherwise it would have been really bad.”

Burress said fire departments from Texico, Pleasant Hill, Grady and Broadview assisted in extinguishing the blaze, as did AeroTech, which provided an aerial water drop via helicopter.

“The Clovis Police Department was also on scene with the city’s public works department and county road personnel, who had their road graders there fairly quickly.”

Weather and fire officials are warning residents about the potential for wildfires across eastern New Mexico and the Texas Panhandle.

The region has seen little precipitation since early January.