On Sunday afternoon at 2:20pm there was a house fire north of Alliance at 5911 Jefferson Road. Hemingford Volunteer Fire Department was first on scene with assistance from the Alliance Volunteer Fire Department, Box Butte County Sheriff’s Department, Prema (Panhandle Rural Electric Membership Association), and the Deputy State Fire Marshal. Hemingford Fire Chief Shad Bryner said, “The preliminary cause of the fire right now is an outside ashtray”. We spoke with Bryner about the fire, you can hear that audio below.