Texas wildfires: Map of blazes ravaging the Panhandle - The Independent

Texas wildfires: Map of blazes ravaging the Panhandle | The Independent

Texas wildfires: Map of blazes ravaging the Panhandle

The largest Smokehouse Creek fire is 0 per cent contained as of early Wednesday morning and is estimated to be 500,000 acres, making it the second-largest blaze in state history
Katie Hawkinson Comments

Multiple wildfires are burning across the Texas panhandle, prompting evacuations and briefly shutting down a major nuclear weapons plant on Tuesday night.

The largest Smokehouse Creek fire is 0 per cent contained as of early Wednesday morning and is estimated to be 500,000 acres, making it the second-largest blaze in state history.

A map of the United States with the active Texas fires represented by red dots

Map of Texas showing where active fires are burning (red dots) and where blazes have been contained (brown dots)

Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration for 60 counties on Tuesday as the fire doubled in size in a single day.

The Smokehouse Creek fire is the northernmost fire, burning in Hutchinson County close to the much smaller 687 Reamer fire.

Meanwhile, the smaller Grape Vine Creek fire is 60 per cent contained, and the Magenta fire is 40 per cent contained.

The 687 Reamer fire is at 10 per cent containment and has burned 2,000 acres.

A map of the Texas panhandle, with active fires on 28 February represented by red dots

The Windy Deuce fire, which is burning 40,000 acres at 20 per cent containment, has scorched southern Moore County. This fire is just north of Potter County and caused the Pantex Plant — America’s main facility for assembling and disassembling nuclear weapons — to briefly close operations on Tuesday night. The plant resumed normal operations Wednesday morning, according to its website.

The Grape Vine Creek fire is the westernmost, burning 30,000 acres in Gray County. Firefighters have the blaze 60 per cent contained as of Wednesday morning.

Meanwhile, the Magenta fire, burning just 2,000 acres at 40 per cent containment, is in Oldham County.

The National Weather Service has predicted weather conditions favourable to limiting the spread of the fires are on the way, with cooler temperatures and weak winds.

The Smokehouse Creek and 687 Reamer fires are burning in Hutchinson County

The Windy Deuce fire, represented by the red dot, is burning in southern Moore County

The Grape Vine Creek fire is burning in Gray County

The Magenta fire is burning in Oldham County