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A massive fire has destroyed dozens of homes and is only a quarter contained.
Bastrop County officials in Texas have confirmed that 34 homes and structures have been lost in the Hidden Pines fire.
The amount of homes lost has multiplied since Wednesday, but firefighters appeared to be making progress with the fire’s containment, which is now estimated at 25 percent. It has burned 4,383 acres.
Weather conditions have been more favorable for battling the fire, with relative humidity rising to 23 percent. The stronger winds expected Thursday afternoon did not materialize, Bastrop County officials said.
Meanwhile, the Texas A&M Forest Service has called in a DC-10 air tanker that can drop close to 12,000 gallons of retardant at a time to help battle the wildfire.
The tanker can spread retardant over a swath three-quarters of a mile long and 500 feet wide. The Very Large Air Tanker, or VLAT, is flying in from the West Coast and expected to be available Friday.
The city of Austin’s Animal Services office is assisting Bastrop County in housing pets from homes threatened by the Hidden Pines fire.
Already, Austin animal shelters have taken in 90 pets from the Bastrop County shelter to make room for animals brought in from homes that have been evacuated because of the fire. As of Thursday morning, the Bastrop County shelter had taken in 50 pets from families whose homes were in danger, according to the Austin officials.
“The best way for people to help Bastrop animals is to adopt from one of Austin’s shelters or rescue partners,” said Erica Thompson, Bastrop County Animal Services office director. “Additionally, at this time the Bastrop shelter is not in harm’s way so we could also use volunteer support to help walk dogs and assist with kennel cleaning.”
Austin Animal Services has also provided the Bastrop County shelter with more than 100 crates and kennels and has veterinarians and other staff on call to assist.
“We are glad to help our Bastrop County neighbors,” said Tawny Hammond, Austin’s Chief Animal Services Officer. “We need the public’s help. Adopt in Austin to help Bastrop.”
Federal aid will be sent to Bastrop County to fight the Hidden Pines fire, with more firefighters arriving sometime Friday, state officials said.
More emergency personnel from Florida and Georgia has already been committed, officials said.
“This fire has national attention now,” Texas Emergency Management Assistant Director Nim Kidd said.
Additional resources also have arrived from the U.S. Army, including two more Black Hawk helicopters and two cargo-lifting Chinook helicopters, officials said. They will dump large buckets of water over the fire. Black Hawks dumped about 110,000 gallons of water on the fire Wednesday, county officials said.
Already, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved a grant that will reimburse up to 75 percent of money spent fighting the fire, Kidd said.
Government officials, including Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and state Sen. Kirk Watson of Austin, assembled Thursday morning near Buescher State Park north of Smithville to announce the disaster declaration that opens the door to FEMA aid.
“We grieve for the families and the homeowners who were displaced by this,” Abbott said. “This has to be an echo of a nightmare they faced just a few years ago.”
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