A wildland fire started in Big Bend National Park, Texas, around 5:00 PM on Monday, February 1st, when heavy winds caused a power line to fall. The fire burned grassland and brush habitat, and is estimated to have been around 1,800 acres in size. It is now 100% contained.
Powerline Fire as seen in our Incident Dashboard
Heavy winds originally pushed the fire to the east and northeast of Panther Junction during the evening of February 1st, and the fire covered 500 acres by Monday evening. By Tuesday afternoon the fire had spread to over 1,000 acres as winds continued to blow. A combination of National Park Rangers and fire crews battled the fire, working 10-12 hour shifts at a time. Higher humidity, colder temperatures, and somewhat diminished winds on Wednesday helped slow the fire during the evening hours, along with firefighter efforts to work hot spots along the fire perimeter.
Electrical power was initially lost to the Panther Junction, Chisos Basin, and Rio Grande Village areas, but was restored as of February 3rd. Additionally, two park roads, the road to Rio Grande Village and Old Ore Road, were closed as a precaution but both roads were re-opened on February 2nd.
No park structures were damaged, and no injuries were reported during the initial fire or suppression efforts.
Source : http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4659/
