At least three homes destroyed by wildfire

This mobile home was one of the first destroyed in Wednesday's fire.

At least two mobile homes and a two-story house, as well as numerous outbuildings, have been destroyed in a fire currently burning off the Old Grand View Highway northeast of Division Road.

Fire crews from Mountain Home, the airbase and the BLM are on scene, as well as a helicopter and small aircraft dropping water and fire retardant.

Fanned by light breezes, the fire line stretches for at least 1.5 miles, with some elements of it as far northeast as a mile or more from Division Road.

At least one home, protected by surrounding fire breaks, escaped destruction, although fire passed around it on three sides.

The fire was first reported at about 3:15 p.m. Wednesday.

Initial indications are it started in or near a shed, then quickly swept to a mobile home a few dozen yards away. The resident of that home evacuated in time, but by the time the first fire crews arrived the structure was fully engulfed in flame.

So far, no injuries have been reported, although structural losses are extensive.

The blaze had burned at least 200 acres by 6 p.m., the BLM reported. The length of the fire line and shifting winds have made fighting the fire a challenge, although firefighters hope to contain it in the next few hours.

In addition to the structures destroyed in the first hour after the initial outbreak, several other homes, outbuildings and silos are threatened by the blaze.

The area immediately near the fire has been blocked to traffic.

An earlier fire that burned 30 acres in the Mayfield area has been extinguished.

Details are still sketchy on all the incidents. See next week's edition of the Mountain Home News for a complete story.