UPDATE: Rhodes Fire 15% Contained
By: Courtnee Hembree/Austin Kellerman
Updated: February 27, 2009
7:05am UPDATE:According to the Taylor County Sheriffs Office, all roads have been reopened and evacuees are able to return to their homes.
TAYLOR COUNTY, TX - Firefighters battled a massive wildfire in southern Taylor County overnight but said early Friday morning the blaze is just 15 percent contained. According to the Texas Forest Service, at least 3,000 acres have been burned and flames have reached as high as 60 feet in the air.
Firefighters haven't received reports of any homes or structures being burned, according to a news release from the Texas Forest Service.
Taylor County Deputies went door-to-door late Thursday in the Hidden Valley subdivision to evacuate residents. At this point, that's the only major evacuation. Residents of Elm Valley were told to prepare to evacuate but the evacuation order was never given.
The Taylor County Sheriffs Office reports Farm Roads 89 and 126 remain shut down this morning.
The fire initially started Tuesday but flared up again 15 miles southwest of Abilene. By Thursday afternoon, a plume of smoke could be seen hovering over Abilene.
Firefighters from at least 17 departments across the Big County sent trucks to the scene of the fire. The Texas Forest Service deployed a heavy tanker, two helicopters, and several single-engine planes.
Wind turbines are in the path of the flames, but workers on the scene say each is surrounded by 50 feet of gravel which keeps them from harm's way.
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