2024 Panhandle Wildfires

Lubbock Area United Way kicked off its annual fundraising campaign yesterday. This year’s goal is not measured in dollars donated, but in lives impacted. The Texas Legislature passed a bill in the regular session to provide resources to volunteer firefighters in response to the 2024 Panhandle Wildfires. Our reporter Brad Burt has more on SB 34, which will go into effect on Sept. 1.

The increasing size and frequency of wildfires in the Panhandle is putting strains on rural fire departments. Our Brad Burt reports that a bill to bring funding and equipment for these departments is now headed for Governor Abbott’s desk. The Buddy Holly Center and the Silent Wings Museum are once again taking part in the Blue Star Museums program, offering free admission to active duty military personnel and families through September 1. You can find a list of qualifications, identification, and all the participating museums at arts.gov/bluestarmuseums.

The legislation was written after the state’s largest wildfire scorched more than 1 million acres in the Panhandle last year.

Yesterday, the Texas House passed a set of bills as part of the state's response to last year's panhandle wildfires, designed to improve emergency response and fire prevention. As spring starts with the hope of April showers in Lubbock, the city has issued its seasonal watering guidelines. Our Samantha Larned explains that residents are asked not to irrigate between 10 A.M. and 6 P.M. and are assigned two days a week.

The Smokehouse Creek fire tore through the Texas Panhandle early last year, burning over a million acres in just weeks. In the small town of Canadian, where the devastation was severe, residents say the heartbreak lingers and a full recovery could take years.

Among the proposals is a bill that would force more inspections of power lines, which a committee concluded ignited a blaze that burned more than 1 million acres last year.

A panel of Texas lawmakers heard testimony Tuesday about the investigation into what caused the largest wildfire in Texas history, which burned more than one million acres of the panhandle in late February and early March.

No state agency is taking responsibility for making sure the privately built lines that power many oil and gas sites are safe. Such lines have been blamed for sparking two recent Panhandle fires.

Short of an immediate statewide response, Texans who lost homes and livestock are taking matters into their own hands to better prepare their property for a wildfire.

According to the committee's summary report, submitted Wednesday, the largest and most destructive fires were caused by power lines and other electrical equipment in disrepair because “irresponsible” oil and gas operators and utility providers were not held accountable.