A woman has died in the severe bush fires in the US state of Texas. The 83-year-old died in the town of Stinnett, an authority representative told local media on Wednesday evening. At least 20 buildings in the town were destroyed by the fire, and numerous houses in several other towns also went up in flames.
More than 400,000 hectares of land have already been destroyed in the fires across the state, much of it caused by the fire known as the Smokehouse Creek Fire, which, according to the Forest Service, is only three percent contained.
High temperatures and strong winds in Texas
The fires are being fueled by unseasonably warm temperatures and strong winds. Texas Governor Greg Abbott declared a state of disaster for 60 counties. Near the city of Amarillo, a nuclear weapons factory had to briefly stop operations on Tuesday due to the fire.
Elsewhere in the Panhandle area in northwest Texas, authorities called on people to leave their homes and go to emergency shelters.
Weather helps firefighters fight bushfires
The US Weather Service in Amarillo predicted cooler temperatures “with weak winds” for the coming days. This could help the fire department fight the fires.