Wildfire Burns Over 52,000 Acres In West Texas

FORT DAVIS, Texas (AP) – Diminishing winds gave firefighters the upper hand Friday against a 52,000-acre wildfire burning in West Texas, Texas Forest Service officials said.

Winds with gusts of up to 40 mph over the last few days have fanned the Hughes Ranch Fire. The blaze, about one mile south of the Marfa airport, was 65 percent contained by Thursday night, officials said.

Forest Service spokesman Warren Bielenberg said crews working overnight were able to stop much of the fire’s progress.

As of Friday morning, no homes or structures had been damaged and no injuries were reported.

For much of Thursday the fire burned out of control. The most active part of the blaze was on the southwest flank, where the fire ran for about six miles before firefighters could get it under control, Bielenberg said.

“It’s kind of doing its own thing,” Bielenberg said of the blaze.

Fire crews dropped flame retardant north of the blaze early Thursday, but the flames jumped over the line and continued north to Texas State Highway 166, burning parts of the Bloys Camp historic religious site.

The fire was sparked Wednesday when a Union Pacific railroad crew was “grinding and welding” on the railroad tracks off U.S. Highway 90 west of Marfa. About 60 homes and 300 structures were in danger Wednesday, but none had been damaged as of Thursday evening, Bielenberg said.

The railroad was working with state officials to ensure that residents and property owners are compensated for any losses, said Joe Arbona, a Union Pacific spokesman.

“We truly regret this,” Arbona said. “It was clearly not intentional but we will definitely take care of folks out there.”

Forest Service spokesman D.L. Wilkerson said Union Pacific was issued a citation, but said he did not have any other details. Arbona said he did not have details about any sanctions from the state.

Officials think changing winds could make the blaze easier to fight on Friday, Bielenberg said.

Wind gusts between 30 mph to 40 mph have been recorded in West Texas over the last few days and a red flag warning and wind advisory had been issued.

For Friday, south to southeast winds of 10 mph to 15 mph were expected in the region, said Lora Mueller, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

Strong winds also fanned a grassfire sparked by fireworks after the end of an exhibition game by the U.S. Olympic softball team in North Texas.

The blaze burned about 5 acres in Gateway Park in Fort Worth on Thursday night before being quenched. No injuries or structural damage were reported, authorities said.

“It is my best guess that this was caused from the fireworks,” fire Battalion Chief Donald Clark told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “The wind direction and location of the fire match up pretty good.”

The Olympic softball team had been playing the ASA Regional All Stars in an exhibition as part of the 48-city “Bound 4 Beijing” national tour.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)