A house fire recently destroyed the home and belongings of Tim and Patty Benton of Welda, but no injuries were reported in the blaze. A statement from Anderson County Emergency Director, Mark Locke, says dispatchers received the call shortly before 3:00 Thursday afternoon, February 8th, and the first units found the structure completely enveloped in flames. Lock says at the time of the fire, the area was receiving close to 40 mph winds that were fanning the fire. Additional units were requested. In total units from Welda, Garnett, Harris, Colony and Greeley stations responded.
At approximately 11:00 that night, the fire was declared extinguished. The fire rekindled early Friday, and units from Welda, Garnett, Harris and Westphalia responded. Locke says the cause of the blaze is undetermined and is under investigation by the Kansas Fire Marshal’s office. Details will be released when the investigation has been completed.
