ORANGEFIELD, Texas — A fire that burned 15 acres in Orangefield earlier this week has been determined to have been caused by a downed powerline.
A live main powerline fell to the ground and sparked the fire on Wednesday according to Joel Ardoin of the Orange County Emergency Management Department.
(EDITOR'S NOTE: The above video first aired on August 30, 2023.)
About 2,000 Entergy customers in the area were left without power during and after the fire.
It's unclear if the power outage was caused by the line falling or by the fire. 12News is reaching out to Entergy for clarification.
Firefighters from the Orange County Emergency Service District 1, Bridge City Volunteer Fire Department, West Orange Volunteer Fire Department, Little Cypress Fire Department and the Texas A&M Forest Service battled the fire.
The fire burned about 15 acres and no homes or other structures were lost according to Bridge City Assistant Fire Chief Josh Taylor.
No evacuations were called for.
There were over 2,00 residents in the area near the fire without power around 5 p.m. according to Entergy's Power Outage Map but power was restored by about 10 p.m. Wednesday night.
12News reached out to Entergy. They provided the following statement:
We are aware of the fire and have no additional details at this time. We continue to work with local agencies and monitor the increased risk that comes with high heat and drought conditions, and we are taking proactive measures to help reduce potential issues from fire hazards. With continued high temperatures expected across parts of our service area, we ask customers to join us in taking every precaution to remain safe from the extreme heat and follow any local or state orders, like full or partial burn bans, to help prevent fires.
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This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.