CHELSEA, Okla. — Rogers County agencies are investigating a possible arson fire that burned hundreds of acres of farmland over the weekend. And what was destroyed in the fires is costing local ranchers thousands of dollars.
It was a long weekend for fire crews in Rogers County as they battled a several hundred-acre grass fire just a few miles east of Chelsea. That fire is now being investigated as arson, and local ranchers said this fire has left many worried about how they’ll get by.
“I just happened to see a bunch of smoke and it getting bigger and heavier and thicker and I thought well I’m gonna go check this out and when I went to check it out it just happened to be my place,” said rancher Kevin Rowley.
Rowley is a rancher in Chelsea. He said when he saw the smoke, he immediately thought of his cattle as the flames crept closer and closer to his home. But the cattle are now the least of his worries.
“Ten acres was damaged. I had eight round bales, five-by-six bales that were burnt up,” he said.
Another alleged arson cost another rancher in Nowata County nearly 300 bales of hay, and with the already limited amount of hay because of the drought and each bale costing around $100 to replace, this fire has cost ranchers nearly everything.
“A lot of the farmers and ranchers that have cattle, they’re taking their cattle off to sale because they can’t afford to feed them," Rowley said. "They can’t afford to buy the hay."
He said he doesn’t understand why someone would do this.
“I’ve heard people have had just the round bales set on fire, not the fields, just their hay. I mean these people are messing with farmers' and ranchers' livelihood and it’s not good,” said Rowley.
Rowley said he hopes whoever caused the fire over the weekend, is caught as well as the culprit for the fire last week in Nowata County. Rogers County Sheriff’s Office said they’re working all angles to find the people responsible. Chelsea Fire and several other agencies that responded to the fires are also meeting with commissioners to see if they can receive some funding to help.
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