Crews fought grass fire in Battle Ground, Harrison Road now open

BATTLE GROUND, Ind. (WLFI) - Fire crews made quick work in putting out a field fire in Lafayette Wednesday afternoon.

The Shadeland Fire Department said around 2:00 p.m., CSX Railroad crews were working on a piece of rail near Evonik Industries in Lafayette.

The crews sparked a fire, which spread to a nearby field.

Fire officials said the security officers at Evonik saw smoke and called 911, which was when the Shadeland Fire Department responded.

Once Shadeland fire crews had arrived, officials say the CSX crew on the scene had already put out most of the flames with fire extinguishers.

Fire crews went down to the site of the fire with water vests and extinguished the remaining flames, which, according to officials, took only about 15 minutes.

Crews want to remind you that during this dry time of year, just a small spark can turn into a big fire.

As a reminder, Tippecanoe County is under a mandatory burn ban because of the persistent drought-like conditions.

Firefighters say this quickly sparked fire is exactly the reason the burn ban is in place.

"This is exactly why. With the heat, the winds, and the dry, dry conditions. Even though we got a little bit of rain, it's not enough to keep the ground saturated," Wabash Township Firefighter Kevin McCombs said.