HEMPHILL, Texas — A large wildfire in the Sabine National Forest has already burned several hundred acres.
The fire is burning in the Indian Mounds Wilderness.
The fire was started by lightning and discovered Monday, July 24, 2023 by a fire patrol who spotted the smoke plume, according to a news release from the United States Forest Service (USFS).
Jan Amen with the USFS tells 12News by Wednesday, 71 acres had burned, by Thursday, 225 acres had burned and by Friday morning, 489 acres had burned.
The Sabine National Forest is a total of 160,656 acres.
Amen says the US Forest Service expects the number of acres burned to move up until the fire reaches some boundaries, which include the boundaries are FM 3382, Toledo Bend reservoir and Butler Point Road.
Thee plan is to let the fire grow to the boundaries because it's not threatening people.
Amen says they are not allowed to go in with heavy equipment where the fire is located because of the Wilderness Act of 1964.
Fires are handled this way in wilderness, but this would be handled differently if this were considered general forest.
Permission has been granted to use helicopters to drop water on the fire dipping from nearby Toledo Bend Reservoir. Chainsaws and leaf blowers have also been approved to aid in containing the fire.
Fire Crews from all around the country have rapidly deployed to help contain this fire, including the Cherokee Hotshots from the mountains of Tennessee, equipment from Virginia, Mississippi, Georgia, Louisiana and a hand crew all the way from Puerto Rico, according to the release.
These fire crews are expertly trained and conditioned to operate under these conditions.
“I can’t say enough about the grit and determination the fire fighters have shown under brutal conditions as they work to contain this fire. The ability to quickly mobilize from different parts of the nation and seamlessly integrate into a cohesive organization is nothing short of amazing," Forest Fire Management Officer with the National Forests and Grasslands in Texas, Jamie Sowell said. "We greatly appreciate the hard work supporting the National Forest and Grasslands in Texas."
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