PILGER, Neb. — A grass fire near Pilger, Nebraska, caused a brief power outage and scorched 13 acres this afternoon. The Pilger Volunteer Fire Department responded to the blaze near 573rd Ave. around 3 p.m. on June 20.

Authorities believe strong winds caused a tree to fall onto power lines, leading to the fire. The downed lines sparked flames and shorted out, igniting the dry grass.

Stanton County Public Power crews acted quickly to restore power to half a dozen homes affected by the outage. Firefighters from Pilger, Wisner Fire & Rescue, Stanton County Emergency Management, and two local residents with tractor discs worked together to extinguish the fire.