Texas A&M Forest Service talks wildfire management

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – As of Thursday, the Smokehouse Creek wildfire has burned over one million acres in the Texas panhandle.

Managing wildfires, especially wildfires of that size, takes a large effort. Matthew Ford, a spokesperson for the Texas A&M Forest Service, said communication is key in these situations.

Oftentimes, local, state, and even federal agencies are involved. They all need to be on the same page.

“That team is a minimum 35 personnel who specialize in this kind of situation In terms of organization, logistical needs, finances,” Ford said.

Firefighters from both Bryan and College Station fire departments were called to help respond to the wildfire.

The scene is around 500 miles away from home, but Brazos County Deputy Emergency Management Coordinator Jason Ware said this happens when wildfires grow too large.

“You can do what we call recycle and give the firefighters that’s been out there for days on end a chance to rest and recuperate and allow others to take over,” he said.

The Texas A&M Forest Service, one of many agencies dispatched, is using several different strategies to contain the flames. According to Ford, equipment ranges from engines, to bulldozers, and planes.

Their primary goal is to prevent the fire from spreading further, which is done by creating “breaks,” or barriers, that are supposed to contain the flames.

“Widens the defense that we can in order to contain the fire within the fire perimeter, not only allowing our dozers to create a path but allowing those engines to transfer those containers at a later date to provide water suppression,” Ford added.

At the time of publication, data from the Texas A&M Forest Service listed the Smokehouse Creek fire as only 3% contained.

This number does not refer to the actual percentage of land contained, Ford said. He described the metric as a way for officials to express the likelihood the fire breaches containment and continues to spread.

”That is how much you feel that the overall fire can be contained without breaking. So to really clarify, 20% containment, that there is an 80% chance that this fire could breach containment lines,” Ford said.

However, they’re not just battling the fire itself, they’re also taking on the weather conditions.

“Wildland fires are very aggressive with very high winds, with the vegetation,” Ware said.

Firefighting planes will likely be on the scene by the end of the week, Ford said.