With North Texas fire danger rated high to very high today, fire crews are battling on several fronts.
Wise County: Even with a 100-acre wildfire still burning out of control in Wise County, evacuation orders north of Aurora have been lifted.
Dubbed the Deep Creek Fire, it has been burning since about 9 p.m. Wednesday night and Wise County Emergency Management reports it started when a dump truck crashed into a power pole, igniting the grass. The impact also took out power to about 1,500 Oncor customers in Aurora, Rhome and Newark. But as of this morning, that figure is down to about a dozen.
Some homes about three miles north of Aurora were evacuated around 10:15 p.m. but those people were allowed to return about an hour later once it was clear the fire's progress toward those homes had been blocked. Even so, the Texas A&M Forest Service says this morning there is zero percent containment.
Hood County: The Colony Fire near Tolar has burned nearly 500 acres and is just 50% contained. A Cresson firefighter was treated for burns at Parkland but was released last night
Parker County: The Snake Draw Fire near Milsap is now 100% contained. The flames burned close to Millsap Elementary School which was not damaged. But two structures were destroyed elsewhere
Denton County: A 70-acre fire in the Denton County portion of Frisco is now out but it took firefighters from Frisco and five neighboring fire departments to get it extinguished.
The flames broke out Wednesday in a grassy field near Legacy and Stonebrook and created smoke for at least an hour. Commanders say no one was hurt and no structures were damaged.
Somervell County: Now burning into its 17th day, the 67,00 acre Chalk Mountain Fire is, this morning, considered 96% contained
In all, 20 wildfires continue burning in Texas today. All of them are in a central strip from North Texas and the Big Country down through the Hill Country and continuing to the Rio Grande Valley.
Every one of the 254 Texas counties but one is in moderate to very high fire danger today. The lone exception is coastal Chambers County where fire danger is rated lower.
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