With no rain in sight for relief, a massive, spreading fire has already destroyed over 4,000 acres of land and nine homes.  Hundreds of people have been evacuated as dozens more homes are threatened. The fire was only 15% Thursday morning and has prompted Governor Greg Abbott to declare a state of disaster for Bastrop County.  

A shift in wind direction Wednesday sent the smoke plume from that fire into Austin, the state’s capital, about 30 miles away.  

“We haven’t gained the kind of ground we wanted to throughout the day,” said Bastrop County Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Fisher “We haven’t lost any more assets. In fact, we keep saving assets. I think we’ll be out for several more days.”

The high in Austin reached 96 on Wednesday, breaking the daily record and establishing an all-time record for the hottest reading so late in the year. Previously, the latest date of a temperature at or above 96 degrees was Oct. 13 in 1991. Monday brought a high of 99, which topped any temperature ever recorded on or after Oct. 12 in Austin.

As winds are picking up in the central portion of the United States officials are expecting more fires to begin due to the lack of moisture on the ground and extremely low dew points in the air.

Red flag warnings are up now in portions of South Dakota and Iowa as well as Texas.  A red flag warning means that conditions are right for fire to start and spread easily.