Texas Wildfires Growing: At Least 2 Dead, Thousands Evacuated, 300 Homes Destroyed (video)
Posted By Vicki McClure Davidson on September 5, 2011
Raging wildfire in Bastrop, Texas
A huge wildfire that started yesterday in Bastrop County, Texas has grown and is far from containment — more than 300 homes have been destroyed, as well as 14,000 acres. Thousands of people have already been evacuated. Other fires are raging across the state.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who has been on the road for his presidential campaign, has cut his trip short and returned to Texas.
A 20-year-old woman and her 18-month-old baby daughter died in their trailer home on Sunday near Gladewater, Texas, unable to escape the fire. Gladewater is in Gregg County. An autopsy of the unidentified woman and her child has been ordered.
Heartfelt prayers to all in Texas who are endangered by these wildfires.
From The Gonzales Cannon, Bastrop fire still uncontained, and it may get worse:
BASTROP — Fire crews from more than 30 agencies worked late into the night Sunday attempting to contain a wildfire in Bastrop County which had already consumed more than 300 homes and 14,000 acres, hoping to get the blaze under control before expected high winds kick up again Monday.
Whipped by winds from the backside of Tropical Storm Lee and a cool front that moved through the area, raging firestorms sprang up across Texas Sunday afternoon. And the worst part may not be over, weather watchers say. Weather forecasters say continuing strong afternoon wind gusts in excess of 30 miles per hour coupled with very low relative humidity could combine to create even worse conditions for firefighters trying to control the blazes.
KXAN New: Bastrop, Texas Fire Update | September 5, 2011
From KUT News, Bastrop Fire Forces Hundreds to Evacuate:
From KUT’s Matt Largey at Bastrop Middle School:
“The folks sitting here, looking around, they look like they’re kind of in shock. Obviously this is a difficult situation for them. They look exactly as you’d expect somebody to look like, who’s just had to flee their home because of a wildfire.”
Bastrop Middle School is one of several shelters set up for Bastrop County residents who’ve been forced to evacuate.
Meanwhile, another 400 acre fire was reported near the Hays-Travis County line. The blaze crossed into Hays County shortly after 6:00 p.m. Sunday. All residents in that area being evacuated with the assistance of Hays County Sheriff’s deputies. These roads include Stagecoach Ranch Road, Overland Stage road, Deadwood stage Road, Stagecoach Ranch Loop, and Cripple Creek Stage Road.
From ABC News:
High winds and drought conditions are fueling dozens of fires in Central and East Texas that have scorched thousands of acres, burned hundreds of homes and claimed lives.
A 20-year-old woman and her child died in their trailer home Sunday near Gladewater, Texas, unable to escape the inferno that one longtime Texas sheriff said was the fastest-moving fire he had ever seen. That fire has since been extinguished.
The largest wildfire currently burning in the state began Sunday afternoon in Bastrop County and has blackened more than 14,000 acres, caused over 5,000 people to evacuate and damaged or destroyed at least 300 homes, according to fire officials. The 16 miles wide and four miles long blaze, southeast of Austin, continues to rage unchecked.
“It’s a monster, and it’s zero percent contained,” said Texas Forest Service spokeswoman Jan Amen.
In response to the fires Texas Gov. Rick Perry cancelled his planned appearance at a Labor Day forum in Columbia, S.C., today as well as events in California tomorrow to return to Texas, a spokeswoman for Perry told ABC News.
“Our state has got wildfires that are running quite wild at zero containment right now and the winds are supposed to pick up again,” Perry said.
From San Antonio Express-News, Uncontrolled Central Texas wildfires pushed by wind:
BASTROP — Strong winds, low humidity and tinder dry grass, shrubs and tree limbs from a yearlong drought are fueling the largest fires Central Texas has seen in generations — and it’s only growing.
According to the Texas Forest Service and Bastrop County officials, no part of the 25,000-acre Bastrop Complex Fire is contained. And another fire has started in the Southwest corner of the county.
Both fires are growing and moving, as they are being pushed by the strong afternoon winds. The forest service is reporting 63 new fires across Texas since yesterday, for a total of 32,000 burned acres.
Gov. Rick Perry is expected to fly into Bastrop this afternoon to see the fire and address the public.
From a gas station on Highway 21, Christopher Humphrey watched as black plumes erupted into the thousand-foot-high wall of gray smoke that now is the backdrop for the town of Bastrop and the surrounding area.
“Black smoke means a house or car just went up,” said Humphrey, who used to be a volunteer firefighter.
From KTBB News:
EAST TEXAS — As fires blaze across East Texas, many families have been forced from their homes. But people with no other place to go are finding refuge at local locations. Our news partner KETK has begun compiling a list of shelters and other assistance centers.
An evacuation shelter has been set up at Maude Cobb Convention Center in Longview. The City of Longview is also in a position to assist those with the sheltering of animals if the need arises. Anyone needing shelter as a result of the recent wildfires can go to Maude Cobb. Anyone wishing to donate non-perishable food and drink items can take those donations to the Longview Fire Department’s Fire Station #6 located at 2808 McCann Road, Longview, Texas.
A homemade video of the Bastrop fire shows it crossing the freeway:
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