South Dakota
Competition for Nebraska’s ‘Carhenge’ rises near South Dakota’s Badlands
KADOKA, S.D. (Nebraska Examiner) — Nebraska’s quirky replica of England’s prehistoric Stonehenge, “Carhenge,” is about to get some new competition in a neighboring state. And a former Nebraskan is behind it.
Rising from a dusty, prairie ridge along Interstate 90 near this Badlands-area town is a collection of firetrucks dubbed “Firehenge.”
Its creator, an Omaha Burke High School grad who runs a Rapid City brewery, said the ring of 10-ton firetrucks vertically arranged in a circle is more about promoting his Firehouse Brewery Company than trying to lure away visitors from Alliance, Nebraska’s popular Carhenge, about 200 miles to the south.
The new South Dakota version of the roadside attraction, which sits just off I-90, also includes a collection of buried fire hydrants called “Doghenge.” By next summer, the new henges will include a gift shop where visitors can purchase brewery souvenirs and canned beer and wine from the Firehouse Brewing Co., South Dakota’s first and oldest brewery.
“We are just having a ton of fun out here. Just come out and see it,” said Bob Fuchs, the co-owner of the brewery who graduated from Burke in 1981. And, he adds, bring your dog.
A city official in Alliance, which took over ownership of Carhenge in 2013, said she doesn’t expect local residents to mount a monumental fuss over a competing “henge” in the general vicinity.
“I think all of these things are fun,” said Shana Brown, the director of cultural and leisure services for Alliance.
As it turns out, both Carhenge and Firehenge have plenty of competition in tourism’s Carhenge-replica category.
There’s a “Foamhenge” (made out of foam) in Virginia, a “Truckhenge” near Topeka, Kansas (made out of farm trucks), a “Phonehenge” (made out old telephone booths) in South Carolina, and a “Strawhenge” (made out of bales) in Bavaria, Germany.
Years ago, a “Twinkiehenge” was built during a Burning Man festival in the Nevada desert. There was once a “Snowhenge” in Michigan and a “Fridgehenge” (made out of old refrigerators) once graced the plains near Santa Fe before complaints caused its demise.
A couple decades ago, a reporter was summoned to Chadron, where a suspected “Hayhenge” had been built northeast of town. Round hay bales had been arranged in a circle at a local ranch.
In the kinda-old-henge category, there’s a full-size concrete replica of Stonehenge in Maryhill, Washington, that was built in 1918 to honor people lost in World War I.
And near Carbury, North Dakota, there’s a circle of granite walls that serves as a 21st Century solar calendar, which is the suspected purpose of Stonehenge, a prehistoric circle of stones aligned for ceremonial purposes to indicate the summer and winter solstices, and the spring and fall equinoxes.
Carhenge was built in 1987 by Jim Reinders and his relatives as a memorial to Reinders’ father, who had lived on the farm north of Alliance where the collection of 39 American cars – arranged to align with the solar calendar – now sits.
The off-beat attraction draws about 100,000 visitors a year, according to Brown, and features a staffed gift shop from May through September. An estimated 4,000 people gathered there for the solar eclipse in 2017.
Carhenge has appeared in films, commercials, television shows and in song. Last summer, it hosted a group of muralists, who painted murals on the grey-painted cars, providing a new look for the motorcar monument.
Fuchs, the Firehenge creator, said he’s not haunted by henges but had visited Carhenge shortly after it was first created.
The inspiration for his firetruck circle came during a recent marketing meeting for his brewery, which was established inside a former Rapid City firehouse built in 1915.
Fuchs has long parked old firetrucks, purchased from all corners of the Midwest, next to his brewery billboards to draw more attention to his business. He says that he often hears that visitors to Rapid City’s downtown area ask “where’s the Firehouse?”
“It’s guerilla marketing,” Fuchs said during a recent visit to Firehenge. “It’s very effective.”
At the marketing meeting, one of Fuchs’ aides was playing with a toy firetruck. Once she set it on end, vertically, an idea was born.
He said he has no plans to hoist a firetruck so it sits horizontally across two vertical trucks — like the stones at Stonehenge and cars at Carhenge. Too many liability concerns, Fuchs said. More firetrucks may be planted this spring, though, he said. And a YouTube video, featuring a visit by aliens to Firehenge, is in the works, Fuchs adds.
Over the din of a front-end loader smoothing out a gravel parking lot, he said it’s been a lot of fun.
“I get to explore my artistic side by planting fire trucks in the prairie,” Fuchs said.
Nebraska Examiner is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Nebraska Examiner maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Aaron Sanderford for questions: info@nebraskaexaminer.com.
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South Dakota
USDA to offer distaster assistance to South Dakota agriculture producers impacted by winter storms
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – The U.S. Department of Agriculture is offering financial and technical assistance to South Dakota farmers and livestock producers who may have been impacted by the recent winter storms.
“I encourage impacted producers to contact their local USDA Service Center to report losses and learn more about program options available to assist in their recovery from crop, land, infrastructure, and livestock losses and damages.” said Richard Fordyce, Production and Conservation Under Secretary.
FSA’s Emergency Conservation Program and Emergency Forest Restoration Program can assist landowners with financial assistance to restore damaged land and conservation structures or forests.
“Our staff will work one-on-one with landowners to make assessments of the damages and develop methods that focus on effective recovery of the land.” said Jessica Michalski, Acting NRCS State Conservationist in South Dakota.
For more information about the disaster assistance program, click here.
Copyright 2026 Dakota News Now. All rights reserved.
South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden, left, and Lt. Gov. Tony Venhuizen unveil a plaque for retired U.S. Navy Capt. E. Royce Williams in the Hall of Honor at the Capitol in Pierre on March 25, 2026. (Photo by Meghan O’Brien/South Dakota Searchlight)
PIERRE, S.D. (South Dakota Searchlight) — There’s a new name in the South Dakota Hall of Honor at the state Capitol building.
One-hundred-year-old South Dakota native and retired U.S. Navy Capt. E. Royce Williams was celebrated at a Wednesday ceremony where a plaque honoring him was unveiled, although Williams did not attend.
“In spite of being outnumbered and facing incredible danger, Captain Williams engaged the enemy with courage and skill,” said Republican Gov. Larry Rhoden. “Our state has always had a strong tradition of service, and Captain Williams is the very best of that tradition.”
President Donald Trump awarded Williams the Medal of Honor, the country’s highest military honor, at the State of the Union address earlier this year. The medal honors actions by Williams that had been classified for decades.
“His story was secret for over 50 years, he didn’t even want to tell his wife, but the legend grew and grew,” Trump said during the speech in February. “But tonight, at 100 years old, this brave Navy captain is finally getting the recognition he deserves.”
On Nov. 18, 1952, over Korean coastal waters during the Korean War, then-Lt. Williams, from Wilmot, South Dakota, led three F9F Panthers against seven Soviet MiG-15s. He disabled three enemy jets and damaged a fourth.
The Soviet jets, according to the U.S. Naval Institute, were “superior to the F9F in almost every fashion.” The mission was the only direct overwater combat between U.S. Navy fighters and Soviet fighters during the Cold War.
Williams, one of 11 Medal of Honor recipients from South Dakota, now lives in California. The Hall of Honor at the South Dakota Capitol is located in the hallway that visitors enter immediately after going through security.
Red Flag Warnings are in effect across parts of the central High Plains and adjacent Rocky Mountain region on March 25, 2026, as meteorological conditions support critical fire weather across portions of Wyoming, Nebraska, South Dakota, and nearby areas.
The National Weather Service (NWS) offices in Cheyenne, Riverton, North Platte, Rapid City, Billings, Missoula, Grand Junction, and Hastings issued multiple coordinated warnings covering numerous fire weather zones, with the most widespread period of concern from late morning through the evening hours. In several areas of Nebraska and Wyoming, warnings extend into March 26.
Sustained west to southwest winds of 25–65 km/h (15–40 mph), with gusts reaching 65–95 km/h (40–60 mph), are forecast across much of the region. The strongest winds are expected in parts of Wyoming and Montana, including mountainous and foothill areas, where gusts may locally reach 95 km/h (60 mph).
Relative humidity values are forecast to drop to between 10–20% during peak heating, with some locations reporting minimum values near 10–12%.
Temperatures are expected to rise well above seasonal averages, with highs reaching the upper 20s to low 30s °C (upper 70s to lower 90s °F) across parts of Nebraska, Wyoming, and surrounding regions. This combination of warm temperatures and dry fuels significantly enhances the potential for ignition and rapid fire spread.
The Storm Prediction Center (SPC) identified a Critical Fire Weather area in its Day 1 Fire Weather Outlook for parts of central and eastern Wyoming into far western Nebraska and extreme southwest South Dakota, citing a strengthening surface pressure gradient and strong mid-level winds contributing to sustained surface winds of approximately 30–40 km/h (20–25 mph) and relative humidity near 15%.
The fire weather threat is forecast to shift southward in the coming days. The SPC Day 2 outlook highlights critical fire weather conditions across central New Mexico into the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles and northwest Oklahoma, where low relative humidity and strengthening winds are expected to persist.
Additional hazards include the potential for isolated dry lightning, particularly across portions of western Nebraska and surrounding areas during the late afternoon and evening. Any lightning strikes in dry fuels may act as ignition sources, while associated outflow winds could lead to erratic fire behavior.
A cold front is forecast to move through the region late on March 25 into early March 26, bringing an abrupt wind shift from westerly to northerly directions with continued gusts of 30–70 km/h (20–45 mph). While cooler temperatures and slightly higher humidity may follow the frontal passage, the wind shift could exacerbate fire behavior in ongoing incidents.
Late March marks the beginning of the peak fire weather season across the central High Plains and adjacent regions, when dormant grasses and dry vegetation are highly receptive to ignition. Combined with frequent strong wind events and low humidity, this seasonal pattern increases the likelihood of fast-moving grassland fires.
Authorities advise against outdoor burning during the warning period, as even small ignition sources may lead to rapidly spreading fires under the prevailing conditions.
References:
1 Mar 25, 2026 Day 2 Fire Weather Outlook – NWS – March 25, 2026
2 Mar 25, 2026 Day 1 Fire Weather Outlook – NWS – March 25, 2026
3 Day 3-8 Fire Weather Outlook Issued on Mar 24, 2026 – NWS – March 24, 2026
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