PADRONI - Heavy black smoke from a structure fire filled an otherwise sunny afternoon in Padroni on Sunday afternoon. 

The Sterling Fire Department said crews from Crook, Peetz and Merino responded to the "major incident" in the northeast Colorado town. 

One witness said they could see smoke from their house for "quite a while." The same witness said part of the old Padroni school was on fire, however that has not been confirmed by emergency response officials. 

A photo from Amanda Schaefer showed flames and black smoke coming from a building behind a home at the end of a dirt road. 

The Community Emergency Response team also responded to the scene with water and Gatorade for first responders.

This is a developing story. Stay with News Channel Nebraska for the latest.