TAMFS: No active Texas wildfires, Smokehouse Creek fire 100% contained

Kristina Wood, Amarillo Globe-News
Updated ·2 min read
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After more than three weeks, with critical fire weather and storm systems passing in and out of the area, the largest wildfire in state history is fully contained.

The Texas A&M Forest Service said Saturday night, March 16, that the Smokehouse Creek Fire, estimated at a total 1,058,482 acres, was 100% contained, as is the 144,045-acre Windy Deuce Fire.

"The potential for large wildfires has decreased across the High Plains behind the cold front passage as the fire environment will feature less wind, cooler temperatures and improving fuel moisture," the update reads. "Near normal fuel moisture will keep fire potential low for for the majority of Texas through Sunday."

A Texas A&M Forest Service photo showed where grass was beginning to turn green in the area, previously charred black by the fast-moving flames fueled by very dry vegetation, high temperatures and strong winds.

Areas of the Smokehouse Creek Fire are showing signs of recovery after the fire burned through the area in late February / early March, reaching more than a million acres and spreading across Texas and parts of Oklahoma.
Areas of the Smokehouse Creek Fire are showing signs of recovery after the fire burned through the area in late February / early March, reaching more than a million acres and spreading across Texas and parts of Oklahoma.

On Feb. 29, the Smokehouse Creek Fire surpassed a million acres and became the largest wildfire ever to burn in Texas. The fire, which started near Stinnett in Hutchinson County on Feb. 26, scorched about 90% of Roberts County, devastated Canadian and Hemphill County, and also burned portions of Carson, Gray and Wheeler counties in Texas and Ellis and Roger Mills counties in Oklahoma.

For the first time in nearly a month, there were no reported active wildfires in the region on Saturday.More information on the recently contained wildfires, can be found on the Texas A&M Forest Service Incident Viewer at tfswildfires.com/ , on X at twitter.com/AllHazardsTFS or on the Current Wildfire Situation page online at tfsweb.tamu.edu/CurrentSituation .

As donations continue to pour in and funds are being raised by various organizations throughout the area to help with the wildfire recovery, Gov. Greg Abbott announced earlier in the week that the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) approved his request for disaster declarations in communities affected by the wildfires, including the counties of Armstrong, Carson, Donley, Gray, Hansford, Hemphill, Hutchinson, Lipscomb, Moore, Potter, Randall, Roberts, Sherman, and Wheeler.

SBA representatives opened two Disaster Loan Outreach Centers to explain the application process, assist with completing applications, and address questions about the disaster loan programs. A Disaster Loan Outreach Center located at the Hemphill County Courthouse at 400 Main St. in Canadian is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. The other center located at The Dome Civic Center & Convention Center at 1113 Bulldog Blvd. in Borger will be open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays.

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Texas wildfires reach 100% containment in Panhandle