ROCKINGHAM — A welding mishap sparked one of two wildfires across Richmond County on Tuesday.
According to County Ranger Brandon Van Buren with the N.C. Forest Service, someone was welding on a piece of property behind Rockingham Dragway when slag hit the dry grass and caught the field on fire.
The property, at the corner of L.G. Dewitt and Beaverdam Church roads, is owned by the family of County Manager Bryan Land — GIS records still show it owned by his late father, Vance Land.
It had previously been leased by Rockingham Dragway for parking. However, since the current owners decided not to renew the lease, it has been used to store homes manufactured by Cavco.
In addition to the NCFS, Emergency Services Director Bob Smith said multiple agencies from Richmond and Moore counties were dispatched to the fire: Hoffman Fire Department; Ellerbe Fire Department; Northside Fire Department; Hamlet Fire Department; Derby Fire Department; Aberdeen Fire Department; Pine Bluff Fire Department; and the Richmond County Fire Marshal.
Hoffman Fire Chief Frank McKay said several of the structures were damaged in the fire, but wasn’t sure of the exact number. The extent of the damage is currently unknown.
Van Buren said another wildfire burned nearly 100 acres of the Hoffman Field Trial Grounds, on the west side of Ledbetter Road.
The exact cause of that fire is unknown at the time of writing.
As of Dec. 18, 272 wildfires had burned 387.9 acres of private or state-owned land in North Carolina during the month of December, according to NCFS.
