Gregory, Texas – Heavy smoke blanketed a rural South Texas community, and many residents were ordered to evacuate as firefighters worked to contain a blaze Wednesday evening, officials said.
Heather Gonzalez, a spokeswoman for the Texas A&E Department, said:&M Forest Service.
Residents in the north end of the city were ordered to evacuate and a shelter was set up at a nearby community centre. No injuries were reported, and due to heavy smoke that reduced visibility, officials were unable to provide information about the burning buildings.
“There is heavy smoke in the area that could pose a health risk,” Gonzalez said. “We therefore want to advise people to leave and avoid the area.”
She said Wednesday’s weather created ideal conditions for the fire to spread quickly, with extremely dry air and wind speeds ranging from 15 mph (24.1 km/h) to 30 mph (48.3 km/h) in the area. But by the evening the fire had stopped spreading and the weather was expected to improve over the next few days.
She added that it was not immediately clear how the fire started on Wednesday afternoon, and that officials were continuing to investigate.
“Ground crews are patrolling the area and taking care of any hot spots they find,” Gonzalez said.
CenterPoint Energy, a major utility company, has temporarily shut off natural gas service to the city as a precaution, according to a post on the city’s Facebook page.