Chalk Mountain Fire near Glen Rose burns over 6,000 acres, property; no injuries reported
The Chalk Mountain Fire in Somervell County has burned more than 6,000 acres as of Tuesday afternoon with about 10% contained, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.
The county has issued a disaster declaration, and the Red Cross opened a shelter at the Somervell County Expo Center for those affected by the fire. A community meeting was scheduled Tuesday night at the Expo Center. Voluntary evacuations have been announced.
No injuries have been reported.
United Cooperative Services said on Facebook that crews were working to restore power in the area after the fire destroyed at least 40 poles and infrastructure.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Alexandra Schwier, the public information officer assigned to the Chalk Mountain Fire, told the Star-Telegram in an email that “local officials are working to confirm the number and type of structures lost.”
Cyndi Smith, coordinator for Erath County Emergency Management, said Texas A&M Forest Service officials are using Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping to determine the exact types of structures that have been destroyed.
The Texas A&M Forest Service estimated the size of the fire at approximately 4,000 acres Tuesday morning. Around 5 p.m., the service updated that figure to 6,000 acres.
Update: the #ChalkMountainFire in Somervell County is estimated at 6,000 acres and 10% contained.
The fire became very active again this afternoon. Aviation and ground resources continue to work on building containment lines. #txfire pic.twitter.com/wjwZlgXZhW— Incident Information - Texas A&M Forest Service (@AllHazardsTFS) July 19, 2022
The fire was along U.S. 67 near Glen Rose, about 45 miles southwest of Fort Worth. The Somervell County Fire Department said the fire sparked between the community of Chalk Mountain and Dinosaur Valley State Park, according to WFAA-TV.
The fire “remained very active overnight and spotted over FM205 in multiple areas,” the Forest Service said Tuesday on social media.
Crews were trying to protect structures in the area while using heavy equipment to construct a containment line, the Forest Service said.
The fire, which started Monday, almost tripled in size overnight, according to the Forest Service estimates.
Mary Leathers, spokeswoman for the Forest Service, said in a news conference Tuesday morning that crews planned to fly over the wildfire to better assess its size and the extent of the damage.
Evacuations
Smith said at the televised news conference that everyone north of U.S. 67 and west of Farm to Market 56 had been asked to leave. Smith said the evacuations aren’t compulsory but that authorities “highly encourage it.”
Officials are asking all evacuees to call the emergency operations center at 254-897-2242 or check in at the Expo Center so they can make sure everyone is accounted for.
According to Smith, there is also room for livestock at the Expo Center.
“We’ve also got trailers on standby that can help out getting things moved; they just need to call the EOC and request it if they don’t have enough trailers to move cattle or livestock,” Smith said at the news conference.
The fire department also told Star-Telegram media partner WFAA-TV that crews were working to relocate animals threatened by the fire.
Weather creating complications
Several firefighters reportedly have been treated on the scene for heat-related illnesses as the region continues to experience a prolonged stretch of temperatures over 100 degrees.
No relief from the heat wave or drought conditions is expected soon, and a red flag warning for elevated wildfire risk is in effect for north and central Texas on Tuesday through midnight, according to the National Weather Service.
“The bad news is the weather that we have today, we’re going to see for the next several days, so that makes containing the fire a little difficult, but we’re going to keep at it and each day we’re going to get a little more containment on it,” Leathers, the Texas A&M Forest Service spokesperson, told KXAS-TV.
While rain could come Wednesday and Thursday to North Texas, none of it is expected to go far south enough to reach Somervell County.
Nuclear power plant and Dinosaur Valley
Leathers said there is no threat to the nearby Comanche Peak Nuclear Power Plant, multiple outlets reported.
“The nuclear power plant is in front of the fire but it’s in really good condition,” Leathers said, according to KXAS. “We’ve got a nice wide road between the fire and the plant, and the plant has got a lot of asphalt and concrete so the threat is not to the plant. The threat is to the homes that lie between the fire and Highway 56.”
Dinosaur Valley State Park near Glen Rose posted an alert on its Facebook page saying the park is closed until further notice.
Fossil Rim Wildlife Center on the other side of Glen Rose said on Facebook that guided tours were canceled Tuesday. Self-guided drives can proceed as normal, but air quality is poor because of smoke and ash.
Crews also are battling a large wildfire west of Fort Worth in Palo Pinto County near Possum Kingdom Lake.
Since Friday, the Forest Service has responded to 38 fires across the state that have burned approximately 2,600 acres.
Current North Texas Wildfires
This map shows wildfires that have been updated within the past 7 days from the Integrated Reporting of Wildland-Fire Information (IRWIN) and the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC). The larger the circle, the larger the wildfire by acres. Data is from the US Department of the Interior, Office of Wildland Fire, IRWIN, NIFC, NASA, NOAA and ESRI.
Current Texas Wildfires
This map shows wildfires that have been updated within the past 7 days from the Integrated Reporting of Wildland-Fire Information (IRWIN) and the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC). The larger the circle, the larger the wildfire by acres. Data is from the US Department of the Interior, Office of Wildland Fire, IRWIN, NIFC, NASA, NOAA and ESRI.
