83-year-old grandmother dies in Smokehouse Creek fire
NORTH TEXAS - Nearly one million acres scorched and thousands of families forced to evacuate. The wildfires in the panhandle are shaping up to be some of the worst in Texas history.
Families and homes are being threatened by five wildfires still uncontained.
The first death related to the wildfires happened in Hutchinson County, a county official said. The victim's grandson, Nathan Blankenship told CBS News Texas it was his 83-year-old grandmother, Joyce Blankenship.
Joyce Blankenship died when the Smokehouse Creek fire enveloped her neighborhood in the town of Stinnett, northeast of Amarillo.
That's close to where the fire started Monday before it exploded in size, to become the second-largest wildfire in state history.
The path of destruction from the Smokehouse Creek fire is now larger than the state of Rhode Island.