Central Texas is burning.

[Bugman]

Watching the news reports is surreal. In Bastrop County alone 16,000 acres have burned with 400 homes destroyed. Thousands have been forced to flee, across the region. Bastrop is less than an hours drive from Austin.

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[Bugman]

Stiener Ranch is a massive sub-division in Northwest Travis County.

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[TropicThunder]

Oh Lordy. I hope they can get the wildfires under control. I've seen how quickly they can spread and destroy.

 

[Bugman]

Oh Lordy. I hope they can get the wildfires under control. I've seen how quickly they can spread and destroy.

We are in the midst of the worst drought in Texas history and the winds have been gusting up to 40 mph. Fire departments from across the state have responded. At one point the fire in Bastrop County was 16 miles long and 4 miles wide. Last I heard its about 10% contained.

 

[TropicThunder]

We are in the midst of the worst drought in Texas history and the winds have been gusting up to 40 mph. Fire departments from across the state have responded. At one point the fire in Bastrop County was 16 miles long and 4 miles wide. Last I heard its about 10% contained.

God, we don't want another Black Saturday bushfire like back in 2009. Wildfires are deadly.

 

[Bugman]

God, we don't want another Black Saturday bushfire like back in 2009. Wildfires are deadly.

The only good news is I've heard no reports of deaths or serious injuries. Correction: The Bastrop fire is not contained. The Steiner Ranch fire is 10% contained. 25 homes destroyed and many more damged.

 

[Bugman]

God, we don't want another Black Saturday bushfire like back in 2009. Wildfires are deadly.

The only good news is I've heard no reports of deaths or serious injuries. Correction: The Bastrop fire is not contained. The Steiner Ranch fire is 10% contained. 20 homes destroyed and more damaged. Soon footage from Hays County south of Austin.

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[texastickler]

It is bad all ovewr the state that is for sure. We really need rain.

 

[Gothika]

this sucks balls dude we are getting to much rain and u are getting none this rain needs to go where its needed

 

[Bugman]

It is bad all ovewr the state that is for sure. We really need rain.

The number of wildfires in Texas the last two years is unreal. There are so many fires in Central Texas I won't even try to report all of them. The Bastrop fire is now at 25,000 acres, 0% containment according to a report I just heard. Blackhawk helicopters and C-130 aircraft are being sent to fight the fire.

 

[Myriads]

Sad to see this. It's like the flip side of what just happened to my area. We were flooded. Wish we could send the extra water down to you.

Myriads

 

[Bugman]

Sad to see this. It's like the flip side of what just happened to my area. We were flooded. Wish we could send the extra water down to you.

Myriads

Yes, I've seen the reports from your area. Tragic. Parts of the Gulf Coast are flooding but nary a drop of rain in Texas.

 

[paracarl44]

FOX NEWS Reporting.................................

that a mother and child were killed trying to flee their home.

 

[desdemona]

So now, not only is mother nature kicking our butts, we're facing other disasters. Nobody gets a break ::

 

[Bugman]

that a mother and child were killed trying to flee their home.

Those deaths were in East Texas, not that it diminishes the tragedy in any way.

http://www.texas-fire.com/2011/09/2-confirmed-dead-in-string-of-east-texas-wildfires/

I heard a report of fires around Columbus, around 80-100 miles west of Houston. This is becoming a disaster of Biblical proportions.

 

[TropicThunder]

This may be very naive of me, but are there NO precautions people can take to protect their own home? I mean, if you KNOW this is heading your way and your house is doomed, could you not coat your yard in some kind of non-flammable material (even if it ruins the yard completely. Who cares, it's toast anyhow?) that would at least keep the flames out of reach of your home? Be it a powder, liquid or what have you, it seems like there would be SOMETHING you could do with this sort of forewarning to at least protect your home 🙁

If there's one thing I learned about living in the Kootenay Valley, its that wildfire can spread quickly, and often without warning.

What sorts of non-flammable material could you use? How could you and hundreds of other people purchase enough of it to save hundreds of houses? And you could potentially put yourself in alot of danger if you don't get away from the fires. Imagine your house is saved, but you're surrounded by a 360 degree blazing inferno. Smoke inhalation is another factor to take into consideration, seeing as how the smoke will affect you and your house before the fires do. I get what you're saying, but its not a very realistic option. The best you can do is get house insurance.

 

[paracarl44]

It is a shame.............................

that Texas needs rain and here we will have floods by this weekend.

 

[Bugman]

This may be very naive of me, but are there NO precautions people can take to protect their own home? I mean, if you KNOW this is heading your way and your house is doomed, could you not coat your yard in some kind of non-flammable material (even if it ruins the yard completely. Who cares, it's toast anyhow?) that would at least keep the flames out of reach of your home? Be it a powder, liquid or what have you, it seems like there would be SOMETHING you could do with this sort of forewarning to at least protect your home 🙁

Pretty much what Tropic said. The Texas Forest Service (I think) has information on certain steps that can be taken but as I understand it
its more directed at entire sub-divisions. The problem with these fires is the 30-40 mph winds. The Bastrop fire for instance jumped the Colorado River in two places. The winds have died way down so that might help.

A short update. The Bastrop fire is still pretty much out of control. I just heard a report of a fire breaking out in the Oak Knoll Rd.-Highway 183 area in north Austin and another in the Mustang Ridge sub-division. Thats north or northwest Austin, not sure. Some 1,000 homes in Central Texas have been destroyed.

Edit: Two deaths confirmed in Bastrop County, no details being released for now other than it was not emergency response personnel who died.

 

[TklDuo-Ann]

There are fire-resistant agents that can be sprayed on the home to keep it from catching. But, with fires this huge, there's neither the time nor the supply to do it. Plus, the expense that most folks simply can't afford. We've been very fortunate in the US that we've survived everything thrown at us over the years. This year seems to be mother nature's carpet bombing campaign. Record setting snowfall, tornados, floods and fires are all taking their toll. We can't do much more than is being done to avoid it. But, I hope folks can pull together to help one another get through it!

 

[paracarl44]

I am glad to see that Governor Perry is staying home and tending to business, instead of trying to win the Republican nomination for President.

 

[Bugman]

I am glad to see that Governor Perry is staying home and tending to business, instead of trying to win the Republican nomination for President.

Oh, Mr. Perry has left or will be leaving soon to take part in a debate tonight. I got home not long ago and am looking for updates on the fires.

There is some news, a mixture of good and bad. The Steiner Ranch fire 100% contained, but 30 homes were destroyed and almost 100 damaged. Residents are being allowed back to their standing homes, others to survey the damage to their homes. The Bastrop fire in now 30% contained but almost 900 homes have burned to the ground. I've found no reports of new fires in the area.

 

[kopfhorer]

Sad to see this. It's like the flip side of what just happened to my area. We were flooded. Wish we could send the extra water down to you.

Myriads

I second that.

Hang in there.

 

[Sir Bombers]

Yep... it's pretty bad here in Texas... Especially on the day when it was really windy which was made worse due to the wind being uncomfortably hot too.

I saw the smoke from the Bastrop fire roughly 50 to 60 miles away from my room, helicopters dumping fire retardant and everything... It was a mixture of scary and heroic...

 

[Bugman]

At last count 1,387 homes have burned in Bastrop County. Of the two deaths there one was a resident of Smithville, not far from the City of Bastrop. He and his fiancee left their home but he went back to retrieve some of his tools and lost his life as a result. So sad, so unnecessary...

 

[kopfhorer]

Damn... 🙁