SIDNEY - Area fire departments responded to a grass fire west of Sidney Saturday afternoon.

According to a witness, the fire was located east of the old college and Cabela's Distribution Center, north of Brownson.

Temperatures were in the upper 80s and winds were out of the southwest at 24 mph at the time of the blaze.

At least Sidney, Potter, Gurley and Dalton Fire Departments responded to the scene. Other details weren't immediately available.

Dry conditions continue to hamper the southern Nebraska panhandle, northeast Colorado and southeast Wyoming.

A red flag warning for wind and low relative humidity remain in effect until 9 p.m. for Logan County. A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now or will shortly. A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire behavior.

Any fire that starts will have the potential to spread rapidly. The National Weather Service says to avoid burning or any outdoor activity that may produce a spark and start a wildfire.

Rain showers and widely scattered thunderstorms are forecast to develop across far eastern Wyoming and the western Nebraska panhandle late Saturday afternoon and evening, according to the weather service. 

Storms, which could become strong and contain hail and strong gusty winds, are expected to linger into the late evening.