Bastrop fire burns 25 acres
Blaze threatened dozens of homes, forced evacuations before containment by array of agencies via land, air.
A brush fire that was sparked alongside Texas 71 in Bastrop on Saturday evening threatened up to 40 homes before it was contained by firefighters.
The fire engulfed 25 acres of forest but was contained before it reached any homes. No one was injured in the fire, and first responders reported that the flames never got within 1,000 yards of a home.
“We’ll probably never know what caused it unless someone comes forward,” said Mike Norman, a firefighter with Bastrop County Emergency Service District No. 2.
Multiple agencies responded to the fire at Texas 71 and Royal Pines Drive just after 5 p.m. Saturday, including the Bastrop Fire Department, Bastrop County ESD No. 2, the Heart of the Pines Volunteer Fire Department, the Texas A&M Forest Service and the Smithville Fire Department. Helicopters and airplanes fought the fire from above.
Emergency crews closed down a portion of westbound Texas 71 for several hours as the fire moved north from Tahitian Drive.
Residents on Peace Haven Lane, Royal Pines Drive and Pine Hill Loop were asked to evacuate, as were residents east of Pine View, residents on Copperas Creek and campers in state park campsites. The Smithville Recreation Center was opened to evacuees Saturday evening.
By 8 p.m., first responders were reporting that the fire’s forward progress had been halted. One lane of Texas 71 was reopened
By 10 a.m. Sunday, officials with the Texas A&M Forest Service reported that the blaze was 85 percent contained.
just before 9 p.m., and residents were allowed to return to their homes.
By 10 a.m. Sunday, offi- cials with the Texas A&M Forest Service reported that the blaze was 85 percent contained and that firefighters had moved into the cleanup phase.
An investigator was called in Sunday to study the origins of the fire, though no cause has been determined yet, Texas A&M Forest Service officials said.