As extreme heat and drought drag on, Oklahoma wildfires are burning hot and fast.
Fires have burned about 5,200 acres in the state, and 53 counties were under burn bans Monday afternoon.
Crews are still fighting the Gracemont Fire, which is the biggest fire located in Caddo County east of Binger and west of Cogar. Jacob Hickey, chief of the Cogar Volunteer Fire Department, said his crew was called out Sunday afternoon and has been working to suppress the fire since.
"We've had some heat exhaustion cases but nothing that couldn't be treated on scene," Hickey said.
The fire has torched about 3,000 acres and was at 0% contained as of Monday morning, according to the Oklahoma Forestry Services. But Hickey said the head of the fire mostly stopped progressing, and crews are working to keep it from growing wider.
A couple of structures burned, but he said they are still assessing the damage to get a clearer picture. He said a few houses are still evacuated, but about 80% of residents are back home.
For weeks, drought and extreme heat have prompted water conservation notices, dried ponds and toasted fields. Oklahoma Forestry Services officials say recent wildfires have been resistant to control efforts, so people should be aware, follow burn ban restrictions and avoid activities that could spark a fire.
Hickey echoed this and said a lawn mower started the fire.
"Yeah, everything is dry, right? We haven't had rain in a really long time," Hickey said. "And with the extreme temperatures that we've had, it's just dried everything up. So all the vegetation is dormant."
Hot and dry conditions are expected to continue. Next week, a cold front could bring temperatures down.
Although Oklahoma State Climatologist Gary McManus notes on the Mesonet Ticker he thinks the cool down will happen, he also thinks it will be short-lived.
He writes that the state is poised to see the warmest September on record, challenging the highest average record set in 1931 highs.
This comes on the heels of the third-warmest and fifth-driest August on record in the state.
This report was produced by the Oklahoma Public Media Exchange, a collaboration of public media organizations. Help support collaborative journalism by donating at the link at the top of this webpage.
