Residents of a southeastern Nebraska village have been told it’s safe to return after a wildfire

Residents of a southeast Nebraska village were told early Wednesday they could return to their homes after an evacuation was advised the day before because of a “large wildfire” in the area.

A Facebook post at 3 a.m. from the Nemaha County Emergency Management Agency informed Brock residents that it was safe to return. Brock is a village of approximately 120 residents located 64 miles south of Omaha.

A shelter has been set up at the Nemaha County Health Center in Auburn for the evacuation of residents. Residents were notified Tuesday around 1:45 p.m. that the fire was on the northbound side of Highway 136 about 2 miles east of Johnson.

Johnson, Auburn, Brock, Julian, Tecumseh, Talmadge and Elk Creek fire departments responded to the scene. Numerous local farmers with tractors and tillage equipment, as well as private businesses with water transportation capabilities, worked alongside firefighters to contain the fire, which was being pushed north by strong southerly winds.

As a precaution, the emergency management said in another Facebook post that residents were being evacuated from Coryell Park to Brock in case efforts to contain the fire were unsuccessful. After about four hours, most of the fire was contained, although firefighters remained on the scene to monitor hot spots.