“Critical dry vegetation” fuels fires amid drought conditions, the agency said. Weather conditions can worsen the situation.
“There is a possibility of large fires today that could go beyond firefighting efforts in areas near Childress, Lubbock, Abilene, Mineral Wells, Brownwood, Midland, San Angelo, Fredericksburg, Del Rio, “Laredo and Brownsville,” the statement said.
By Tuesday, according to the announcement, the possibility of large forest fires will escalate as “critical weather” is expected to develop in a large area of the state west of Corridor I-35.
The fire at the Crittenburg Complex probably started with ammunition fired at a training area in Fort Hood, the commander of the guard, Col. Chad Foster, said in a press conference on Monday.
“All the indicators show small arms fire and some mortars that may have caused the fire in the facility,” he said.
It is unusual for small arms to start fires, which are generally caused by larger weapons or tanks or artillery systems, Foster said, but “extreme drought conditions” have led to “something we would not normally have imagined.”
Amanda Burson Latham was helping a friend move farm equipment near Fort Hood on Sunday and encountered the fire at the Crittenburg Complex, she said.
“The flames were 30-40 feet high and there was a mixture of black and colored rust smoke covering the sun,” he said.
“You could feel the heat go out and you could hear the trees breaking and cracking and the fire roaring,” Latham said.
The Eastland complex, a combination of seven fires, has burned more than 54,000 acres and has been reduced by 90%, according to the Inciweb inter-service website.
CNN’s Raja Razek contributed to this report.
