Cedar Mountain Fire Only 20% Contained

ABILENE -- The Cedar Mountain fire north of Cisco & Eastland is directly affecting both cities, said John Calabrese with the Texas Forest Service.  A thick line of Juniper trees is causing great concern there.

So far the grassfire has burned 7,000 acres, and was 20 percent contained as of 9 a.m.

The fire started April 7, and was originally 60 acres.  The Texas Forest Service worked with volunteer fire departments to get it 90 percent  contained.  Then, Thursday's extreme winds caused the fire to jump containment lines.  No structures have been lost.

The TFS pulled is resources from the Breckenridge fire in order to concentrate on the Cedar Mountain fire.  The Breckenridge fire has burned 3,200 acres and was 70 percent contained as of 11:30 p.m. Thursday.

"(The Breckenridge fire) is pretty well in hand today," Calabrese said.  "The Cedar Mountain fire is our main concern today."

Another fire 10 miles east of Breckenridge, called the Little Cedar Creek fire, has burned 50 acres and was 50 percent contained as of late Thursday night.  The fire is located off US 180 and County Road 143.  Four homes were directly threatened.  A dozer line, saved two structures, Calabrese said.  The Texas Forest Service is no longer lending its resources at that location.

A fire in Brown County, named the Grosvenor fire, has burned 500 acres and is 40 percent contained.  One structure and two cows lost in the fire.  An additional 35 structures are threatened.

The largest fire in the West Central Texas area is in Young County, burning into Jack County.  That fire is 18 miles long by two miles wide.  Texas Forest Service crews are coming in from DFW and East Texas to fight that fire.