By DAVID COLBURN

News editor

Winds gusting over 50 miles per hour kept Marion firefighters on the move Tuesday morning with three separate calls.

The first was to the burn dump south of town, where a fire that ignited in yard waste posed a significant threat from windborne embers. In addition to several fire units, a city loader was sent to turn the waste so firefighters could be certain everything was soaked.

While still at the burn dump, a farmer with a smoldering brush pile near 190th and Xavier Rds. called dispatchers to have firefighters come extinguish it.

Roy and Cindy Davis were inside their house in the 600 block of Hudson St. when they heard a loud bang from a nearby electric transformer at about 10:15 a.m.

When they stepped outside to investigate, they saw a grass fire behind St. Mark’s Activity Center, right underneath the transformer. They immediately called dispatchers.

Firefighters arrived within minutes, extinguishing the blaze before it could damage any structures.

The county remained on high fire alert throughout the day, as it had been Monday, because of strong winds and low humidity.