CONTINUING COVERAGE: Extreme Wildfire Danger / Drought

[TexasStooge]

Mouse sets N.M. house fire; 60 blazes reported in Texas

From The Dallas Morning News and Associated Press

A mouse got its revenge against a homeowner who tried to dispose of it in a pile of burning leaves. The blazing creature returned to the man's house and set it on fire.

Luciano Mares, 81, of Fort Sumner, N.M., said he caught the mouse inside his house and wanted to get rid of it.

"I had some leaves burning outside, so I threw it in the fire, and the mouse was on fire and ran back at the house," Mr. Mares said from a motel room Saturday.

Village Fire Chief Juan Chavez said the burning mouse ran just beneath a window and the flames spread.

All contents of the home were destroyed, he said. No injuries were reported.

Elsewhere in the dry Southwest, more than 60 wildfires were reported across Texas on Sunday, but most were contained to 30 acres or less, fire officials said.

Jim Caldwell, a fire information officer for the U.S. Forest Service, said the biggest fires included one that scorched about 150 acres in Cherokee County.

Another fire in Wood County burned 70 acres before forcing the evacuation of several homes, he said.

Several residents of Ashley County, Ark., were evacuated Sunday when a 3,000-acre wildfire spread 6 miles long, destroying four homes and four other structures. Arkansas saw at least 43 fires, the state's first widespread outbreak this season.

The mile-wide fire burned east of Hamburg, an official said, and it likely would be today before firefighters were able to control it. Firefighters from four volunteer departments used 11 dozers and two airtankers to fight the blaze.

[TexasStooge]

Cooler air won't halt threat of wildfires

From The Dallas Morning News and Texas Cable News Staff Reporters

Monday marked another red flag day in arid North Texas with gusty winds, low humidity and dry brush combining to make conditions favorable for wildfires.

The warning, which was set to expire at 6 p.m., affects the region along and west of Interstate 35 where sustaining winds of 20 mph were expected.

A cold front should move through the region later Monday, bringing a 30 percent chance for light showers, but the precipitation will not be enough to relieve the drought or moisten the ground sufficiently to put an end to the fires, National Weather Service meteorologist Joe Harris said.

Monday's forecast calls for the temperature to reach a high of 66 degrees, then drop to the mid-30s.

The front will drop temperatures to highs in the 60s on Tuesday and to the lower 70s on Wednesday and Thursday, Harris said.

"It will not get cold, but it will cool down," he said.

It has reached the lower 80s in four out of the first eight days of 2006. Sunday's high was 82 degrees at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, the region’s official reporting station.

Statewide firefighters extinguished more than 50 grass and brush fires throughout the weekend, and spent Monday morning containing a lingering blaze in southwest Hood County, said Traci Weaver, a spokeswoman for the Texas Forest Service.

The Hood County fire, which threatened at least one home, was started by a welder working on some outdoor repairs, she said.

The county fire marshal arrested a 27-year-old man on a charge of reckless endangerment, Weaver said.

In what Weaver termed the worst winter fire season in recent memory, 205,686 acres have burned since Jan. 1 and 249 homes have been lost since Dec. 26.

[WaitingForSiren]

Tornado outbreak Arkansas, Missouri, and easter Kansas.

Blizzard Colorado, Nebraska, and Dakotas.

Dust storm Oklahoma, Texas, and western Kansas.

What a crazy storm. Models prog this baby to bomb out to 979 mb in Indiana tomorrow, continuing blizzard in northern plains and another tornado outbreak tomorrow, in portions of Alabama and Georgia.

You mean Iowa?

[wxmann_91]

Tornado outbreak Arkansas, Missouri, and easter Kansas.

Blizzard Colorado, Nebraska, and Dakotas.

Dust storm Oklahoma, Texas, and western Kansas.

What a crazy storm. Models prog this baby to bomb out to 979 mb in Indiana tomorrow, continuing blizzard in northern plains and another tornado outbreak tomorrow, in portions of Alabama and Georgia.

You mean Iowa?

That was posted on November 27.

[TexasStooge]

Wildfires have grass-roots heroes

By DIANE JENNINGS / The Dallas Morning News

HOOD COUNTY, Texas –The alarm sounds at a small metal building that serves as a fire station on the outskirts of Granbury. A handful of firefighters jump on a gleaming yellow truck that barrels down back roads, stopping to pick up a fireman in front of his house before racing to the scene.

The alarm last week turned out to be false; a jittery neighbor saw billows of construction dust and thought it was another wildfire.

"People are nervous," said Mike Bell, chief of the North Hood County Volunteer Fire Department. Then Chief Bell went back to his real job – at the local water department.

The wildfires that have scorched a large swath of rural Texas since last month highlight the work by Chief Bell and more than 30,000 other active volunteer firefighters in the state. In Texas, as in most states, most firefighters are volunteers.

A survey by the Texas Forest Service found that only a third of the state's firefighters are paid. Most of those are in urban and suburban areas.

But when it comes to the recent prairie fires, volunteers are "the initial attack resource for the state of Texas," said Don Galloway, who works with volunteer departments for the Forest Service.

"Texas tends to rely on the rural fire department very heavily," he said.

Hood County, with a population of nearly 50,000, relies entirely on volunteers for fire protection. There are nine departments in the county and a total of roughly 230 firefighters, depending on who's counting.

And though they might seem like anachronisms, today's volunteer fire departments are not quaint relics.

Volunteers respond to pagers instead of sirens, and while there are no minimum firefighter standards, more than two-thirds of them have gotten enough training to be certified.

And because of funding increases related to the Sept. 11. attacks and increased state concerns over urban sprawl, the volunteer departments are less reliant on antique engines and garden hoses these days. Even small departments boast an impressive array of equipment, from pumper trucks to individual "bunker gear" that includes everything from fire hats to red suspenders.

For example, when the Granbury Volunteer Fire Department responded to a medical emergency last week, Assistant Chief Kevin Jones – whose paying job is city fire inspector – asked his responders if they knew where the call came from.

Nope, responded Lt. J.W. Lanham, but the firetruck's "little computer will tell me."

Rosemary Moninger, Hood County's deputy fire marshal, said the average response time here is five minutes or less.

"That's something that we're extremely proud of throughout this county," Ms. Moninger said. "And I personally would match any one of our fire departments and firefighters against any [paid department].

"We're just as good."

In the suburbs

Surprisingly, not all Texas volunteer fire departments are in small towns like Granbury, population 5,000. The two largest volunteer departments in the state serve the Cypress-Fairbanks area and Pasadena, near Houston, said Helen Johnson, outgoing executive director of the State Firemen's and Fire Marshals' Association of Texas.

Both areas have populations at or above 145,000. According to a federal survey, the Cy-Fair department has 55 paid firefighters and 375 volunteers. Pasadena has only one paid worker and 160 volunteers.

In the Dallas area, Rockwall depends on 42 volunteers and six paid staff members.

"Nine times out of 10, you're not going to be able to tell at all when they drive up" whether a department is staffed by volunteers or paid firefighters, Ms. Johnson said.

One reason for the quality: Many volunteers are current or retired firefighters from other departments.

Donnie Davis, chief of the volunteer force in Nocona, in Montague County near the Oklahoma border, spent 25 years as a paid firefighter in Farmers Branch.

"I've got several firefighters on this department that are as good as anybody I ever had on my tailboard that was paid," said Chief Davis, whose town was threatened recently by the fire that destroyed most of Ringgold.

Rockwall Fire Chief Mark Poindexter estimates that almost half of his 42 volunteers work as paid firefighters in other cities.

Rockwall, unlike many departments, requires physical screenings. But even those without rigorous screenings are careful in how they deploy personnel. In the North Hood County department, for instance, two retirees serve as drivers but don't fight fires.

"Everybody's got a place," said Chief Davis of Nocona. "You can't take a guy that's out of shape and put him on the end of the hose line. ... You've got to be wise enough to put everybody in a position that they can handle and make them feel part of the team."

Staying in operation

Still, officials acknowledge such departments face huge challenges, from recruiting, training and retaining volunteers to maintaining equipment.

For Station 70, another Hood County volunteer fire department, just keeping the doors open is a struggle. "We're getting by – barely," said Chief Johnny Miller, who works as a deputy sheriff.

Like the other eight departments in Hood County, Station 70 receives some funding and equipment from the county. It also asks for $12 a year per resident from a local homeowners group. But there's never enough money to maintain equipment the way the station would like.

Sometimes, Chief Miller said, he pulls out his own credit card to "put enough fuel in the truck to get it back to the station to put gas in it."

He estimates that the department, which consists of 11 volunteers, has to raise about $20,000 a year. That's hard to do in a community that's home to many retirees on fixed incomes. The department has held chili suppers, barbecues and Mexican dinners, as well as a "boot drive" to raise money.

But money isn't the only issue. Recruiting volunteers also can be difficult.

"There are not a lot of people who want to run into a burning building," Chief Miller said.

Sometimes people will sign up, only to quit when they realize how much time and commitment the job requires.

"A lot of young people that join, they really don't think it through," said Assistant Chief Gary Tillison.

Chief Tillison's real job is running a pizza parlor, and he has to leave the business when an alarm sounds – as happened more than 300 times last year. He also attends weekly training and a monthly business meeting. In addition, he spent a week's vacation attending "fire school."

That kind of intensely personal commitment is not unusual.

"They don't ever know when to quit," said Ms. Johnson of the State Firemen's and Fire Marshals' Association. "It is amazing to me how many times I'm asked to come and give a presentation for someone who's been there 50 years."

But that commitment is getting harder to find, said Chris Bonner, deputy director of the association and chief of the Manchaca Volunteer Fire Department outside Austin. The department recently started paying two part-time firefighters and one full-timer to staff the station 10 hours a day – because sometimes few volunteers, if any, responded to a fire alarm.

Alarms don't go unanswered when that happens, because other departments are paged to fill in, but "the response times were being affected," Chief Bonner said. "We could not guarantee a response if a call came out in the middle of the daytime."

Combinations

Daytime responders can be particularly hard to find, fire officials say, because many people live in one community but work in another. As a result, more volunteer departments are relying on both paid and volunteer staff.

"I get really scared every time I look at who's working in Fort Worth," said Steve Perdue, chief of the Mineral Wells Volunteer Fire Department, which has about one staffer for every three volunteers. He estimated that half of his 35 volunteers work outside Mineral Wells.

Chief Perdue would like to see some minimum standards for volunteer departments.

"A volunteer fire department can be as good or as bad it wants to be," he said.

But "most of them are good," he said, "because people realize this is serious business, and people know people can get killed."
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IN THE AREA

Most cities in the Dallas-Fort Worth area are protected by full-time firefighters. A few others have a mix of career firefighters and volunteer help. A look at some volunteer departments in the area:

Dallas County: Cockrell Hill, Sunnyvale*

Denton County: Highland Village*, Krum, Little Elm*, Pilot Point, Ponder, Sanger

Collin County: Anna, Blue Ridge, Celina, Farmersville, Melissa

Tarrant County: Everman, Grandview, Haslet, White Settlement

Rockwall County: Rockwall*

*Mostly volunteer

SOURCE: U.S. Fire Administration
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PROTECTING HOOD COUNTY

The nearly 50,000 residents of Hood County, southwest of Fort Worth, are protected by volunteer firefighters – about 230 in all – in nine departments. A look:

Cresson: one station, 30 volunteers

DeCordova Bend Estates/Acton: one station, 25 volunteers

Granbury: two stations, 60 volunteers

Indian Harbor: one station, 18 volunteers

Lipan: one station, three substations, 15 to 18 volunteers

North Hood County: two stations, 15 volunteers

Pecan Plantation: one station, 30 volunteers

Station 70: one station, 11 volunteers

Tolar: one station, 25 volunteers

SOURCES: U.S. Fire Administration National Fire Department Census; Hood County Fire Marshal; Dallas Morning News research

[TexasStooge]

Bush issues disaster declaration for Texas fires

From WFAA ABC 8, The Dallas Morning News, Texas Cable News, and Associated Press

President Bush issued a disaster declaration Wednesday for nine Texas counties where wildfires have destroyed homes and blackened thousands of acres of grassland over the past month.

The disaster declaration covers Callahan, Cooke, Eastland, Erath, Hood, Montague, Palo Pinto, Tarrant and Wise counties in North and West Texas. The Federal Emergency Management Agency said additional counties may be added to the list as surveys are completed.

Bush's declaration orders federal aid to augment state and local recovery efforts. Individual assistance is available to people affected by the fires in the individual counties.

Wildfires have killed three people, burned more than 250,000 acres and more than 330 homes since late December.

[TexasStooge]

Grass fire burns 3,000 acres in Jack County

JACKSBORO, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A grass fire was burning Friday morning in Jack County, northwest of Fort Worth.

The fire, which broke out Thursay night, has scorched more than 3,000 acres between Jacksboro and Bryson.

Fire crews had the fire under control until winds shifted and gusted.

Twenty houses were evacuated and the Texas Forest Service was pulling out all the stops to save lives and property. Three out-buildings were destroyed overnight.

You may be seeing some smoke from a new Oklahoma fire reaching into North Texas Friday morning.

Some 40,000 acres were burning in Carter County, just north of the state line.

Nineteen houses have been destroyed, along with twice as many additional structures.

No injuries have been reported.

[TexasStooge]

Grass fire burns 4,000 acres in Jack County

JACKSBORO, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A grass fire was burning Friday morning in Jack County, northwest of Fort Worth.

The fire, which broke out Thursay night, has scorched almost 4,000 acres between Jacksboro and Bryson.

Ten fire departments, the Texas Department of Transportation and the Texas Forest Service had the fire under control until winds shifted and gusted.

Twenty houses were evacuated and three outbuildings were destroyed overnight.

Texas Forest Service spokeswoman Traci Weaver said backfires were set to keep the flames from jumping across State Highway 380. She said the fire was about 60 percent contained Friday morning.

"We have a lot of resources on the ground, and we hope we've got good firebreaks around the fire," Weaver said. "We're hoping we can get things buttoned up by one o'clock, when the weather's supposed to deteriorate."

You may be seeing some smoke from a new Oklahoma fire reaching into North Texas Friday morning.

Some 40,000 acres were burning in Carter County, just north of the state line.

Nineteen houses have been destroyed, along with twice as many additional structures.

No injuries have been reported.

[TexasStooge]

Fires spread in Parker and Palo Pinto Counties

WFAA ABC 8 reports

Grass fires were burning out of control in Parker County on Friday, as blazes were reported in Palo Pinto County.

The Parker County fires have been burning since around 4:00 p.m. along Road 254.

Two structures so far have been destroyed by the flames which are being fueled by a northerly wind.

Crews are trying to douse the flames from the air.

People have been hosing down their rooftops and cutting out fire breaks.

The fire in Graford in Palo Pinto County has also been burning for much of the afternoon. One structure in the area has been destroyed so far.

The Forest Service is calling in a massive 2,000 gallon air tanker from either Fort Smith, Arkansas or Ardmore, Oklahoma to help put out the blazes.

"They haven't determined the cause of these two fires burning today... No one has been injured today... but firefighters are getting tired," said Traci Weaver from the Texas Fire Service.

"Smoke is being blown well to the south," said meteorologist Pete Delkus. "The winds are still up. Gusts are 20 to 30 miles an hour. We still have humidities which are currently low. The Red Flag Warning is in effect until 6:00 p.m. We also have dry weather in the forecast."

A grass fire was burning Friday morning in Jack County, northwest of Fort Worth.

The fire, which broke out Thursday night, has scorched almost 4,000 acres between Jacksboro and Bryson.

Eight fire departments, the Texas Department of Transportation and the Texas Forest Service had the fire under control until winds shifted and gusted.

[TexasStooge]

Smoky brush fires dot North Texas

From Staff and Wire Reports

Brittle conditions from the ongoing drought in North Texas and high winds contributed to over a dozen fires in the area Friday, threatening structures and leading to several road closures.

Outside Graford in Palo Pinto County, the Texas Forest Service battled a widespread blaze from the air, aiding local crews helicopters that dropped with water and fire retardant. Officials told WFAA-TV that at least one structure has been lost in that fire.

Flames from the fire, which stretched across dozens of acres, could be seen shooting into the air, and a plume of smoke was visible for miles.

Forest Service help was also requested to fight a large fire near Poolville, north of Weatherford in Parker County where homeowners remember all too well a fire that claimed multiple dwellings in February of 1996.

Volunteer firefighters were helped by Chinook helicopters dropping water and were able to keep the blaze from reaching any houses.

Texas Forest Service spokeswoman Traci Weaver reminded residents to avoid any burning of any kind, and stressed that even an unextinguished cigarette could start a massive blaze.

"You've got to be extremely careful out there, because it's so dry," Weaver said.

A three-alarm brush fire in north Fort Worth consumed about 75 acres and briefly shut down part of Interstate 35W. The blaze started around 2:20 p.m. next to the Holiday Inn North at Meacham Boulevard, and led police to close the interstate and service roads in both directions.

No one was injured and no structures were harmed by the fire, said Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman Lt. Kent Worley. After burning alongside the road and in the median, it was contained, leaving a swatch of scorched earth.

In Colleyville, a grass fire burned at least two acres in the 5300 block of Colleyville Boulevard near Main Street. Crews from Grapevine and Bedford also fought the fire, which raged near the Village at Colleyville, the city’s shopping and business district. However, city spokeswoman Mona Gandy said no structures were burned.

Flower Mound spokesman Michael Ryan said a fire near International Pkwy. and Silveron Blvd. had burned about five acres Friday afternoon, but it was unknown if any structures were threatened.

Dallas Fire-Rescue crews fought a blaze in South Dallas near South Buckner Blvd. and Forney Rd., as well as a small fire off LBJ and Interstate 35E, but a department spokesperson said both were extinguished quickly.

In western Jack County, firefighters were burning about 250 acres of vegetation, setting backfires to keep flames from jumping Highway 380.

"If you don't catch it there, there's not another natural fire break," Weaver said.

The fire began burning Thursday afternoon northwest of Fort Worth, Weaver said, and was 70 percent contained by late Friday. It claimed more than 4,000 acres, and forced evacuation of about 20 homes, but none were burned. Only a few outbuildings were lost and people started to return home.

Weaver said that due to the remote location, that fire would be left to burn itself out as wind speeds eased after dark.

It took firefighters about 30 to 40 minutes Friday afternoon to extinguish a grass fire in a Wise County field in Boyd. No structures were damaged in the fire, which burned up to 20 acres, said city administrator L.D. Lopez.

Dozens of Texas farmers and ranchers have lost property, income and livestock to wildfires that have ravaged more than 250,000 acres and 340 homes since late December.

Dallas Morning News staff writers Debra Dennis and Holly Yan, WFAA ABC 8 and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

[TexasStooge]

Fire danger continues on Saturday

WFAA ABC 8 Staff

The major grassfires that blackened thousands of acres in North Texas Friday were under control by evening, and no major injuries were reported. Forecasters said potentially dangerous conditions would return to much of the area on Saturday, but much needed rain could materialize on Sunday.

At one point Friday afternoon, big blazes bolstered by winds gusting to 40 mph were burning in three counties: Parker, Palo Pinto, and Jack, where the largest fire blackened more than 4,400 acres.

Jack County firefighters found the only way to contain one blaze was to purposely burn off about 250 acres so there was nothing left to fuel the advancing flames.

Some residents pitched in to help, hopping aboard fire trucks to lend a hand to the exhausted volunteers.

Volunteer fire crews in Parker County were able to bring a big blaze under control after it consumed nearly 1,000 acres in the community of Poolville. One home was destroyed.

Firefighters continued working late into the night targeting hot spots, like burning bales of hay.

In Palo Pinto County, firefighters battled the flames from the air and on the ground.

Near the town of Graford, off Highway 254, aerial views showed the flames cutting a wide swath across mostly unoccupied land.

Doc and Donna Lewis raced against time to evacuate animals that were in harm's way. "I've still got five horses down there that I douldn't get to," Donna Lewis said, as Doc consoled Fancy, a horse that was rescued.

"I bought the place nine years ago and built it from scratch," Doc Lewis said. "I guess I'll have to rebuild it now."

Firefighters in Denton County were able to limit damage from a fire in Argyle along East Hickory Hill Road late Friday afternoon.

A storage shed was the only structure that was caught up in the quickly-moving fire before it was contained.

A three-alarm brush fire in north Fort Worth consumed about 75 acres and briefly shut down part of Interstate 35W. The blaze started around 2:20 p.m. next to the Holiday Inn North at Meacham Boulevard, and led police to close the interstate and service roads in both directions.

No one was injured and no structures were harmed by the fire, said Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman Lt. Kent Worley. After burning alongside the road and in the median, it was contained, leaving a swatch of scorched earth.

In Colleyville, a grass fire burned at least two acres in the 5300 block of Colleyville Boulevard near Main Street. Crews from Grapevine and Bedford also fought the fire, which raged near the Village at Colleyville, the city’s shopping and business district. However, city spokeswoman Mona Gandy said no structures were burned.

Flower Mound spokesman Michael Ryan said a fire near International Pkwy. and Silveron Blvd. had burned about five acres Friday afternoon, but it was unknown if any structures were threatened.

Dallas Fire-Rescue crews fought a blaze in South Dallas near South Buckner Blvd. and Forney Rd., as well as a small fire off LBJ and Interstate 35E, but a department spokesperson said both were extinguished quickly.

Weary firefighters won't be able to rest on Saturday. The National Weather Service issued a Red Flag Warning for most of West Central Texas on Saturday between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Once again, the dangerous combination of gusty winds, very low humidity and tinder-dry rangeland will make the situation especially critical in the region west of Tarrant and Denton counties

"Today's the 25th straight day with abobve normal temperatures," noted WFAA-TV (Channel 8) meteorologist Pete Delkus. But he did say a few much-needed sprinkles could emerge on Sunday, with scattered showers and thunderstorms possible in North Texas on Monday and Tuesday.

"It's not widespread; it's not soaking; but it is something," Delkus said.

WFAA-TV reporter Yolanda Walker in Poolville, WFAA.com editor Walt Zwirko in Little Elm and The Dallas Morning News contributed to this report.

[TexasStooge]

Wildfire threat undiminished on Sunday

From WFAA ABC 8 Staff Reporters

North Texas firefighters were bracing for another day of dangerous conditions on Sunday after wildfires blackened parts of Parker County on Saturday for the second day in a row.

Firefighters were able to bring the flames under control near Poolville on Friday, but the fire rekindled on Saturday afternoon.

At least two aircraft were brought in to fight the fresh fire, helping ground-based crews. A barn was burned before fire crews were able to tame the flames.

The National Weather Service issued another Red Flag fire warning for most of North Central Texas on Sunday between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. The forecast is calling for southerly winds gusting to 35 mph with continued low humidity.

According to radar images, it did rain in parts of drought-stricken North Texas on Saturday night—but you would never know it.

"It is so dry down at the surface that this precipitation is actually evaporating before having a chance to hit the ground," explained WFAA-TV (Channel 8) meteorologist Steve McCauley.

McCauley said it would remain cloudy, windy and warm in North Texas on Sunday and Monday, but that an area east of Dallas could see some showers and thunderstorms on Monday.

The state has set up a hotline to report arson fires: 877-434-7345. The number was being posted on highway message signs in North Texas.

[TexasStooge]

Firefighters warn despite rain, threat remains

By MARY ANN RAZZUK / WFAA ABC 8

People all over Texas had been waiting for rain and while rain showers finally came Monday, Frisco firefighters have warned residents it wasn't enough and the area is still in the midst of a dangerous drought.

Recent dry weather and wildfires have come between what many North Texans enjoy doing, which includes everything from shooting firecrackers to the daily cookout on the grill.

Firing up the grill for dinner is what Gayle Haney said she loves to do, but hasn't had done recently since the dry weather hit.

"All I've ever done is grill my dinners, and now with the fire ban and everything I'm concerned about sparks," Haney said. "I don't do it."

Avoiding possible fire starting situations and using caution is exactly what firefighters are still advising North Texans to do.

A small spark from construction equipment or a sparkler could set off a range fire in a matter of seconds, and some firefighters are worried anything less than a drenching rain will send the wrong message to the public.

They have warned residents easing up in areas where they should still take caution could be a potentially fire starting hazard.

"That will be our fear that people will feel that is the case, and in fact it's a fake sense of security," said Fire Chief Mack Bochardt. "Everything is going into the soil very quickly and the wind is drying it off as soon as it hits the ground."

The call load for Frisco firefighters more than doubled since the drought began and the department added a second crew to its brush truck, which helps attack range fires.

Despite recent showers, firefighters expect another red flag warning day on Tuesday, as well as later in the week.

"We don't have much rain at all," said Carl Smith, Frisco resident. "To be honest, I'm used to rain in Texas for days."

[TexasStooge]

Drought forces ranchers to sell stock

By JIM DOUGLAS / WFAA ABC 8

The drought means many ranchers in North Texas just can't afford to feed and water their herds anymore.

But what is bad for cattle raisers, is good business is for auction barns.

At the Decatur livestock market auctions start at 10:00 a.m. Monday morning.

Last Monday's sale stretched well into Tuesday.

"So far we're running twice as much as normal. Maybe three times."

"We have a lot of producers having to sell out. They're out of water, out of grass, out of hay," said Roland Davie from the Decatur livestock market.

Steve Wolf cut his herd in half.

"I've got hay right now. We've probably got enough for another month and a half or two months," he said.

"We've had this place 26 years now. And it's never been dry. It's down to just a foot of water left in it."

Some ranchers are even selling off their herds before their cows have had calves.

That's like planting a field without bringing in the harvest.

"Just to see people work years to build up their herd, then all at once they have to do away with them. It's kind of heartbreaking really," said Davie.

"Sold 23 cows and four yearlings today," said one of the auctioneers.

Wayne Judge would still be fattening his cows on fields of oats, but two crops failed. So he's selling his oldest cattle first and praying for rain.

Many of the cattle buyers are from northern states, where pastures are greener.

[TexasStooge]

North Texas under red flag warning again

From The Dallas Morning News Staff Writers

North Texas will be under a red flag warning Wednesday as low humidity, dry ground conditions and high winds continue to plague the region.

"It sounds like a broken record," said Jesse Moore, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. "We've been stuck in this windy, dry pattern and there is not a big change coming up soon."

Winds are expected to reach 25 to 30 mph most of Wednesday but will ease to 20 mph by sunset. Relative humidity, which usually is in the 40 percent range at this time of year, is expected to stay in the teens, he said.

Temperatures will climb to the low 70s and drop to the 40s overnight, Moore said.

Similar conditions likely will create conditions for a red flag warning Thursday, when the relative humidity will be 30 percent and winds are expected to reach 20 to 30 mph, he said.

High winds are expected through Saturday, but forecasters see a 20 percent chance for rain on Friday, Moore said.

"We can all hope we actually get some rain this time," he said.

Through Tuesday, North Texas has marked 28 consecutive days without rain at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, the region's official recording station. The last measurable rain at the airport was 0.25 inch on Dec. 20.

Meanwhile conditions have authorities worried about wildfires, said Traci Weaver, a spokeswoman for the Texas Forest Service.

Tuesday's fires in Tarrant County and near the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport were extinguished, but firefighters still were battling a couple of blazes on Wednesday in Travis County in Central Texas and Stephens County west of Fort Worth, she said.

Since January, 96 wildfires have erupted and 208,744 acres have burned, Weaver said.

DallasNews.com reporter Kimberly Durnan contributed to this report

[TexasStooge]

BREAKING NEWS

MESQUITE, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Mesquite firefighters are battling a grass fire near Interstate 30 and Loop 12. There are some apartments in the vicinity.

[TexasStooge]

BREAKING NEWS

MESQUITE, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Eleven units from Dallas Fire-Rescue are battling a large grass fire burning between Interstate 30 and Buckner Blvd. on the city's east side. Strong southerly winds are fanning the flames. All of North Texas remains under a Red Flag Warning until 6 p.m. due to high fire danger.

Live Traffic Reports from Traffic Pulse.

[TexasStooge]

East Dallas grass fire now out

By CYNTHIA VEGA / WFAA ABC 8

DALLAS, Texas - A grass fire which Thursday morning burned an area near Interstate 30 and Buckner Blvd. in East Dallas is now out.

Dozens of firefighters worked for about an hour to contain the blaze to five acres before it could spread to nearby residences and other buildings in the Big Town Mall area.

The fire, which appeared to have started along a frontage road of I-30, came dangerously close to one home where a couple and their young daughter were sound asleep.

Another resident said he was standing by with a garden hose in case the fire approached his home.

Firefighters said stronger winds would have made the fire much more dangerous.

The cause of the fire was under investigation.

"It seems that every time we turn around there's someone who wants to light a fire just to say 'I did it.' There's someone who carelessly throws out a cigarette," said Lt Joel Lavender from Dallas Fire Rescue.

All of North Texas remained under a Red Flag Warning through 6 p.m. Thursday. Strong winds, low humidity and dry vegetation make fires like these a continuous threat.

WFAA-TV (Channel 8) meteorologist Greg Fields said a cool front will arrive in the area on Friday, bringing with it the possibility of a few thunderstorms late in the day.

He said a few showers are also possible on Sunday. The National Weather Service estimated a 30 percent chance of rain on Sunday.

Severe drought conditions continue to plague the Dallas-Fort Worth area, which has seen only a trace of precipitation since Jan. 1 and just one-third of an inch of rain since Dec. 1.

In an average year, North Texas receives 1.17 inches of rain by Jan. 19.


Photo Provided by TXDoT
A traffic camera captured this image of the fire.

[Tyler]

Looks like the Dallas area will finally recieve some much needed rain next week!

[TexasStooge]

Looks like the Dallas area will finally recieve some much needed rain next week!

With any luck.