Fire crews are still actively trying to contain several wildfires in the Texas panhandle, including the massive Smokehouse Creek Fire, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has issued a disaster declaration for 60 counties and urged Texans “to limit activities that could create sparks and take precautions to keep their loved ones safe.”
As of noon Wednesday, the Smokehouse Creek Fire, just north of Amarillo, has burned through 500,000 acres and is zero percent contained. The Smokehouse Creek Fire is now the second-largest wildfire in state history, only behind the 2006 Amarillo East Complex fires that claimed 12 lives and burned more than 900,000 acres.
What we know: Massive Texas panhandle wildfires prompt Gov. Abbott’s disaster declaration
Here’s how the size of the Smokehouse Creek Fire compares:
The largest of the fires grew to nearly 800 square miles. It’s even burned into neighboring parts of Oklahoma. Here’s a map of the Smokehouse Creek Fire compared to the size of Los Angeles County. The city of Los Angeles covers a total area of 502.7 square miles.
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See photos, videos of fires: Texas panhandle wildfire now second-largest in state history
Smokehouse Creek Fire compared to Long Island
Long Island sits at about 120 miles in length and 23 miles wide, with a total of about 1,400 square miles, according to the USGS website. In 2010, the area accounted for nearly 7.56 million people in four counties, the site says.
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Smokehouse Creek Fire compared to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metro area
The 19-county Metroplex region covers about 15,600 square miles in northern Texas, according to a 2020 regional report by the Texas Comptroller website.
The Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metro area accounts for a population of nearly 8 million, according to the 2022 census reporter.
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Where are the Texas wildfires? Check this interactive map
The fire tracker provides a map with pinpoint locations of each fire and also shows where red flag warnings are in effect, among other information. You can also click on each point to see detailed information on the fire in that area.
If you can’t see the map above, click on this link.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: How size of Smokehouse Creek Fire in Texas compares to LA, Long Island
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