HOUSTON – Wildfires raging across north Texas reportedly killed at least one person on Feb 28, as firefighters struggled to control one of the largest blazes in state history, which has destroyed property and prompted evacuations.
The Smokehouse Creek Fire in Texas’ panhandle, a flat northern area known for its prairies and smattering of small towns, was listed as 3 per cent contained by the Texas A&M Forest Service.
The enormous blaze, which spread following harsh winds and unseasonably warm temperatures, has already scorched some 344,000ha.
In the small town of Stinnett, an 83-year-old grandmother died in the fire, a Hutchinson County official told local media, adding that at least 20 structures in the community had been destroyed.
Some 100km to the east in the town of Canadian, home to some 2,300 people, there were “quite a few homes burned”, Mayor Terrill Bartlett told CNN, but “luckily, no one was severely injured”.
According to CNN meteorologist Chad Myers, the fire was moving at a rate of two football fields per second.
In total, the state’s five active fires, all in the panhandle, have burned more than 405,000ha. As at the night of Feb 28, another 18 fires had been contained.
The National Weather Service in Amarillo, the biggest regional city, said on Feb 28 that cool temperatures “with weak winds” were expected, which the authorities hope will aid them in fighting the fires.
In the town of Borger, the authorities shared images of smouldering areas that had been devastated, including several buildings consumed by flames.
Town officials said they had opened a shelter for those displaced, while evacuation orders were issued for much of the nearby town of Fritch, large swaths of which have lost electricity and water.
“I don’t think a lot of folks that live in the Fritch area are probably going to be prepared for what they’re going to see as they pull into town,” Hutchinson County Emergency Management spokeswoman Deidra Thomas said in a video update posted on Facebook earlier in the day.
“There are still homes that are on fire.”
Governor Greg Abbott on Feb 27 declared a state of disaster for 60 counties, while blazes near the northern city of Amarillo temporarily caused the shutdown of a nuclear weapons plant.
President Joe Biden meanwhile was receiving updates on the incident and the White House was in contact with front-line staff, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.
Amarillo experienced serious air quality issues as winds pushed smoke into the area on Feb 27.
Cities across the United States and Canada saw record February temperatures this week, with some experiencing summer-like heat.
An El Nino weather pattern is at play, in addition to climate change, according to experts. AFP
