January 18, 2022 - Area fire departments are experiencing a rise in calls for grass and woods fires or controlled fires which are getting out of control due to high winds and dry conditions.
On Saturday, January 15, Shelbyville Volunteer Fire Department was called to a structure fire on FM 2975. The property owner was in the process of cleaning up a deteriorated older mobile home when the flames began traveling to nearby structures and trees. The fire department responded and assisted the property owner in regaining control of their controlled burn.
The Shelbyville Volunteer Fire Department and Huxley Volunteer Fire Department were both dispatched to another fire which had gotten out of control on Monday, January 17 on CR 2799. The property owner was burning debris when winds again caused flames to spread outside of their intended area resulting in a grass and woods fire which impacted a couple of acres of property just beside a residence.
According to the Texas Forest Service website, Shelby County is currently under a high level of fire danger for the north western part of the county as a moderate level of fire danger for the south eastern part. The dry conditions mixed with the current forecast by the National Weather Service of south wind around 15 mph with gusts as high as 25 mph setups a formula for poor burning conditions. The NWS forecasts a slight chance of showers on Wednesday which will help with the current dry conditions. Be kind to our volunteer fire fighters and wait for more preferable conditions.
