With multiple fires raging in the Texas Panhandle, Gov. Greg Abbott has declared a state of emergency in 60 counties. Multiple communities have been evacuated and mandatory evacuation orders are in place in Moore and Potter counties, reports the Amarillo Globe-News. In Hemphill County, the sheriff's office issued a mandatory evacuation notice but later advised residents in Canadian, the county seat, to shelter in place because of road closures. The largest fire, the Smokehouse Creek Fire, had burned at least 250,000 acres by Tuesday afternoon, making it the fifth-largest wildfire in state history, CNN reports.
The rapidly expanding fire, which started Monday afternoon, has already burned a larger area than all the state's wildfires last year combined. Melanie McQuiddy, manager of a motel in Canadian, tells CNN that she managed to get out of town as the fire approached. "It looks like Armageddon. All the trees are covered in white ash," she says. Her daughter Brooke McQuiddy says friends who were stuck in town were told to shelter at the high school. "They are at the high school football field where multiple residents are together and are literally watching the flames start to take over Canadian," she says.
"Texans are urged to limit activities that could create sparks and take precautions to keep their loved ones safe," Abbott said. "I also want to thank the brave firefighters and first responders who are working tirelessly to protect their fellow Texans." Warm temperatures and low humidity have made conditions ripe for wildfires across the region, the AP reports. Oklahoma Emergency Management spokesperson Keli Cain told CNN Tuesday evening that evacuation orders were issued in Roger Mills and Ellis counties after a Texas fire jumped the state line. (More Texas wildfires stories.)
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