Ross Fire update: the wind-whipped blaze near Palo Pinto grew to 50,000 acres overnight and was still only 5% contained on Tuesday morning. Residents in Palo Pinto County were told to leave, and the fire had spread into Jack County by morning.
The fire started about 1:30 p.m. local time Monday near the town of Palo Pinto, about 60 miles west of Fort Worth. By Monday night, the Palo Pinto County Sheriff was urging residents to go now, especially anyone who might need extra time or help getting out.
Palo Pinto County response
The Palo Pinto Emergency Services Department said the fire had already reached 18,000 acres within 12 hours. Overnight, it nearly tripled that size and shut down a highway as it pushed across Palo Pinto County and into Jack County.
That pace left firefighters working against a narrow window. The Texas A&M Forest Service said, “Firefighters are prioritizing life safety and structure protection, while working to establish containment lines where conditions safely allow.”
Jack County evacuations
By Tuesday morning, more people in Jack County were advised to evacuate as the fire moved north. The Ross Fire’s cause remained under investigation.
Thomas Kyle-Milward, a spokesperson for the Washington State Department of Natural Resources, told affiliate station KOMO in Seattle that “Washington is comfortably in the third-worst fire season from an acres burned perspective since 2015.” The Texas fire sits in the same broad wildfire pattern, but the immediate issue for residents is whether containment lines can hold before the blaze grows again.
For people in Palo Pinto County and Jack County, the safest move is to stay out of the area and follow evacuation instructions already issued by local authorities.
