Roaring fire was holding rain and hunger ranchland in the u.s. State of Texas on Monday, destroying nearly 500 houses for fast forward some blown by the wind howls from the remnants of tropical storm Lee.
At least 5,000 people have been forced to leave their homes in Bastrop, about 25 miles east of Austin, and about 400 were in shelters, officials said.
Strong winds and drought tolerance of fire jump on hilly terrain, pine and cedar trees and over slightly by changing the nature of subdivisions, as well as ranchland. Blaze, as 25 000 acres along the track for about 16 miles, Texas forest service officials spent, he said.
Large plumes of smoke rose into the sky and she hung on downtown Bastrop, a town of about 6,000 people along the Colorado River. The fire was quite far from the city of Austin was not threatened, officials said.
Firefighters lined the roads outside of Bastrop and converged around the houses, as they caught fire, hoping to save them. Helicopters and planes loaded with water can be seen flying and fire. When the winds, the flames would Flare and pop over the tops of trees.
The fire destroyed in 476 households, and about 250 fire men treated the clock tractors and fire pumper trucks, said Monroe County Judge Ronnie McDonald.
Mike Fischer, Director of the County emergency management, said the fire was "nowhere near the controlled", and that he constantly increases the smaller Blaze South of the city.
T going to evacuate, but smoke rushed "then I was not a " and blacker and he was like: ' OK, time to go to the" ', ' "' Gina Thurman, Texas Workforce Commission 47, an analyst said.
"Waiting for a very frustrating thing" subject to the shelter, choking back tears, she sat by himself in curb, outside of boarding to the Catholic Church in the shadow, one of several sites in the farm. You're sitting there ", and Don 't know anything, but ', what is likely to be burned."
Rick Blakley, 54, was among 30 people who slept on camp beds in the Church. He said, he was in a State of shock and "do not to anything to be permanent" when he has finally returned home.
"I just Don 't know that my DocumentsMy will do," he said.
The new outbreak was caused by Governor Rick Perry to return home to Texas, cutting short a visit to Charleston, South Carolina, where he was Campaigning for the nomination of the Republican President. It also canceled the trip in California.
Perry fire out of thin air and a consultant to local officials. He said that the fire was routine "Surreal" comments found.
"I've seen several large fires in my life," he said. "It's like tool, look like I have ever seen, in particular because it was so close to the city. «
From December fires in Texas claimed 3.5 million hectares, an area the size of Connecticut, said Perry. The fires have destroyed houses more than 1,000, he said.
Perry said it was too early to say whether he would be absent Wednesday GOP in California.
"I have to pay attention to politics now," he said. "It is a lot of time. Is the life of the people and their assets are at risk, and that it is much more important. " "
Soil mobilization of the authorities and the air force to combat the largest of at least 63 fires that broke out in Texas since Sunday as wind of what than Tropical Storm Lee was swept Texas, which has suffered the worst drought since the 1950s.
"It still put up a lot of smoke and the frightening" Jan Amen, Texas Forest Service spokeswoman said.
Schools and activities associated with the school cancelled for Tuesday.
There are reports that no immediate damage and officials said they knew the inhabitants not stuck in the House.
On Sunday who die, but about 200 km North-East in Gladewater, the 20-year-old woman and her 18 month old daughter undeclared fast-paced by mobile home except. Fire is Monday, although it is still that a number of other large fire burning in at least four countries in Central and Northern Texas.
Said that at least two-thirds of 6,000 acres in Bastrop State Park had been consumed, Mike Cox of the Department of wildlife and parks of Texas. All non-essential workers were ordered to leave the Park.
"All I see is a wall of smoke," said Cox from the front gate of the Park. The Park is home to several historic rock and stone buildings, civil protection corps in the 1930 and 1940s.
"We are trying desperately to rescue them, Cox said." " "Fire closer and closer to that part of the Park."
It is also the home of Houston Toad, a species of 2 to 4 inches of Toad who appears on the list of endangered species since the 1970s.
Officials were unsure how the fire started Bastropu, but it turned out that two fires merged into the fire "monster", he said, "Amen."
West Austin in Travis County, Texas, at least 20 houses were lost, and 30 other people were injured in a fire. More than 1,000 houses disappeared under mandatory evacuation and 25 in the third fire in Austin area.
Texas suffered more than his fair share of devastating storms, including Hurricane IKE three years ago. States, however, would have appreciated the rain, tropical storm Lee poured on the easternmost Coast Gulf States.
Instead, Texas took the winds n Lee that the next cold front of the number of blazes in which crews responded almost 21,000 fires, because traditional fire season began early, in conjunction with.
Outdoor burning, including campfires and burning debris, prohibited in all but three counties 254 in Texas.
The Governor said that at least 40 aircraft the Texas forest service were involved-fighting Monday along with half a dozen military aircraft in Texas. From the beginning of the season, local and State Fire Firefighters responded to more than 20 900 fire more than 3.6 million hectares.
Joyce Payne, 62, and her husband Mac said they escaped from his home in Bastrop-area Sunday evening. Request response sent by the speakers on fire trucks, she said, her home since 2006 now passed.
"We had a swimming pool," said. "So bad it was ' t way pump this water back out."
She said the men told her she would cry and added: "I want to cry."
Graczyk said from Houston. Associated press photographer Erich Chlegel have contributed to this report.