After burning for more than six days, the Smokehouse Creek Fire in the Texas Panhandle and western Oklahoma was only 15% contained Sunday morning. Drifting sand now poses a threat to rural roads.
April 17 could be a historic day for wildfires across the High Plains and Southwest cautions officials with the Oklahoma Forestry Service (OFS) and the National Weather Service (NWS).
Marty Robert Maahs, 33, turned himself into the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department on April 12 after a warrant was issued for allegedly embezzling more than $1 million from a bank loan involving cattle.
Wildfires have burned up to 200,000 acres in Oklahoma forcing the Governor to declare a state of emergency, while cattlemen are banding together to form a relief fund to lend a helping hand.
The amount of moisture received across the US southern high plains since October has been ridiculously low. Forecasters warn of intensifying drought and wheat crop losses.