Chalk Mountain Fire in Somervell County covers 6,000 acres Tuesday
SOMERVELL COUNTY (CBSDFW.COM) - There's a call for anyone in Somervell County to evacuate as the Chalk Mountain Fire continues to spread. Neighboring Hood County also issued a mandatory evacuation of certain areas, then lifted it later on Tuesday.
"If you are a homeowner in the area and at any point you don't feel safe, don't wait for that knock at the door or that text you're getting to your phone," Chalk Mountain Fire PIO Alex Schwier said. "If you don't feel safe you should leave."
As of 7 p.m. Tuesday, the fire has spread to 6,000 acres and is 10% contained.
There are crews on the ground and in the air, trying to secure a line and make sure the fire doesn't spread outside those boundaries.
High temperatures are also a concern.
"In terms of making sure everyone's staying hydrated, making sure all the crews are safe and not overheating out there," Schwier said. "So that plus the fire actively itself."
As the fire continues, a relocation center has been set up for people to stay with their pets.
"Our protocol kicks in as soon as we see a puff of smoke in a distance and we pay attention to what's happening and if it is coming this way we do evacuate and we would shut down," said Warren Lewis, chief marketing officer at Fossil Rim Wildlife Center.
Lewis said that Fossil Rim is also taking precautions, like cutting fuel lines, clearing land and making sure everyone, including the animals, have a safe way out.
"If it really got bad, we would cut and let loose but we have so many areas within the park where we have fuel burns some people refer to them as fire burns where we've cleared areas so it mainly just be grass that would be burning," Lewis said.
Somervell County Judge, Danny Chambers, said he hopes the fire will be contained over the next two days.
No injuries have been reported, but 12 structures have been destroyed.
