‘It was pouring fire:’ Strong winds spark house fires in Winchester

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - As strong winds ripped through central Kentucky, some gusts quickly turned dangerous.

Some people in Winchester saw houses go up in flames around 9:30 p.m. Friday night. Neighbors like Khristy Burton looked-on in horror.

“It was pouring fire. The wind was blowing and there were flames blowing everywhere,” “Khristy Burton said.

Flames swallowed two houses and left nothing but rubble and ash.

“I mean they were beautiful.” Burton said, “I mean they could’ve been really fixed up and I mean they were beautiful.”

She said the rain on Friday was what helped the most.

Neighbors said the fire started in one house, but quickly spread to another before the wind carried it across the street. They said trees along the road caught fire too.

KB Hill said he watched from his porch as the flames grew, worried it was headed their way.

“When that tree catches on fire next to our house, you know your main concern is that it doesn’t touch your roof, or anything catches fire on your property, so it was pretty wild. The fire department did their job. Took them a little bit but they put it out,” Hill said.

Crews from Winchester, Lexington, and Richmond fire departments helped to fight flames and they worked overnight until the early morning hours.

Burton and Hill said they’re grateful the firefighters worked relentlessly until the fire was put out.

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