Ranchers flung open gates in hopes their livestock could escape fast-moving flames. One family watched in horror as two of their horses caught fire and galloped away in flames. Homes, barns, oil field pump jacks and thousands of acres of rangeland are now blackened.
Such were the scenes in drought-plagued west
No part of
The state, said Texas Forest Fire Service spokesman
The fires continued to rage across
Forces have been so overwhelmed that some small towns have been left to defend themselves.
Just outside
“”Judge, we’ve got a situation coming,”” McIvor said, adding that he’d get back as soon as he could.
The native black Grama and blue Grama grasses surrounding
“”We haven’t had a drop — and I mean one drop — of precipitation of any kind since September,”” said Assistant. Fire Chief
Fires had been popping up in other parts of the state, in the piney woods to the east, in the suburbs of
The landscape in west
By the time the
But the wind lofted embers and ignited spot fires in every direction. More than two dozen homes were on fire. With every garden hose in town going full blast and fire crews pumping their reserves from tankers, more bad news arrived. Fires incinerated power lines and
The department was down to the last 1,500 gallons of water in one pumper truck. Just as Medley was directing crews to drain the town’s hotel pool, a crew from the Texas Department of Transportation arrived with a fleet of water tankers.
Twenty minutes later the fire department’s radio transmitter, on a high hill outside of town, was destroyed by fire. Fire teams, which by late afternoon were joined by volunteer crews from nearby towns, talked to each other on radios but main dispatchers were scrambling to maintain a complete picture of the firefighting efforts.
Days later, Medley said, they climbed the peak to retrieve their equipment. The radio relay was housed in a rock building, whose windows were melted. “”All we found of our equipment was a puddle of aluminum,”” Medley said.
The scenes ranged from surreal to awful. In the middle of the siege
Many firefighters lost houses or barns while they defended their neighbors’ homes. “”They are all friends of ours, but they lost their homes and that’s not easy to take,”” said Judge Grubb, whose barn burned to the ground while he was working. “”There’s nothing about losing structures that doesn’t stink,”” said Medley.
Still, the crews marvel that not one died as a result of the fire, though others perished elsewhere.
“”People are tired and a little cranky, but this is hardy country and these are tough people,”” said
The Rock House fire that began here is now the state’s largest and is roaring in the high country, where crews are making stand to protect a remote Boy Scout camp and the important