08/09/2026
Thankful to be part of a community where so many agencies can come together and support each other and work well together!
With the dry season we’ve been having, something like this can happen in the blink of an eye! Everyone please be safe, avoid all open flames/burning activities and remain alert to your surroundings. If you see smoke, call 911 immediately to report, as minutes matter in emergency situations.
If you come across or hear about an active emergency site, please avoid the situation/area as best as possible.
There’s probably been a lot of talk around Beulah about yesterday’s fire and how it started.
It was a normal day. A farmer was cutting hay, hit a rock, and ONE SPARK was enough.
We often hear the saying, “Fire has a mind of its own.” Yesterday showed just how true that can be. And just when crews were getting it under control, the wind picked up — and as we know around here, the wind has a mind of its own, too.
We drive past these fields every day. We see tractors, combines and haying equipment working and probably don’t think twice about it. But after going so long without a good rain, our fields are incredibly dry, and something as simple as one spark from a rock can grow into a situation of this magnitude.
And the magnitude of the response was just as incredible. The Beulah Rural Fire Department, Hazen, Zap, Golden Valley and Stanton Fire Departments, North Dakota Forest Service, Beulah Police Department, Mercer County Sheriff's Office, North Dakota, North Dakota Highway Patrol, and Mercer-Oliver Emergency Management all became part of one network, working together to protect people, property and livestock.
But that network stretched far beyond emergency responders.Families moved cattle. Fences were cut so equipment could get where it needed to go and livestock could be moved to safety. Beekeepers had hives nearby. Farmers and landowners helped however they could. So many families were affected in one way or another, and so many people simply stepped in where they were needed.
Many of the firefighters out there were volunteers. They left their own work, families and responsibilities to answer the call, and crews remained on scene even after the fire was contained to make sure it stayed that way.
And while they were taking care of our community, others were thinking about taking care of them. Thank you to Don and Carol Boeckel for making sure our first responders had something to eat, and to Losson Leonard at Dairy Queen for generously donating six dozen burgers for the crews.
Most importantly, everyone is safe. The cattle were moved, equipment was protected, and people from across our area worked side by side when it mattered. That is the network behind a community. And this is a community we are very proud to call home!
One more thought after a day like yesterday: we are wonderful at showing up for fundraisers when someone needs us, but you don’t have to wait for a fundraiser to support the organizations that are always there for us. A contribution at any time of the year to your local volunteer fire department, law enforcement, emergency responders — or any of the community organizations that serve us every day — is another way to strengthen that network.
And while everyone was working out there, so many people were thinking of them and praying for their safety. We are so very thankful everyone came home safe. ❤️
Yesterday showed just how much that network matters.
P.S. Even as this photo was being taken, you can see Roughrider Electric Cooperative, Inc. in the background. They were there checking the power poles and making sure everything was safe, too. Another part of that network that showed up when needed.
