Raging Texas Wildfire Spurs Evacuation

Hundreds of square miles of rugged, wooded country along the Brazos River in West Texas remain evacuated as a complex of wildfires remain on a rampage about 70 miles west of Fort Worth.

State and local firefighting forces battled the terrain as well as tinder-dry conditions and gusty winds in trying to tame the Palo Pinto County fire complex.

Evacuation orders were lifted around sunset Sunday for the towns of Strawn and Caddo. However, County Judge David Nicklas said they remained Sunday night for areas east and south of Possum Kingdom Reservoir, including the lakeshore development called the Peninsula.

Texas Forest Service spokeswoman Victoria Koenig said on April 17 that the toll of 31 homes destroyed by the Palo Pinto fires as of the previous night may climb by more than 20.