TAYLOR COUNTY, Texas — The Texas A&M Forest Service Incident Management Team gave a final update on the Hill Top Fire that burned 200 acres, 10 miles south of Abilene, in Taylor County. The fire was started by a lightning strike and as of Wednesday, Aug. 23, is at 95% containment.
On Tuesday, crews continued improving and connecting bulldozer and handlines, nearly fully containing the fire. The use of planes was not needed because the work during previous operation periods was successful in extinguishing hot spots and preventing the connection of containment lines.
Engine and hand crews continued to patrol and, when necessary, handled mop-up operations and checked for hot spots within 200 feet of the line. Fire managers reported little to no smoke in the burn area at the end of shift Tuesday evening, the update said.
Firefighters will continue to patrol and monitor the fire area Wednesday as forecasted weather includes continued hot and dry conditions with elevated wind speeds in the afternoon. Residents and visitors to the area are likely to see high levels of dust and ash blowing from the burn area as winds increase out of the east. There are no active evacuations in place.
Significant damage to powerlines and a repeater building were noted by fire managers Aug. 19 and no other structure damage or loss has been reported. On Aug. 20, two minor injuries were reported. The firefighters were treated on scene and returned to work.
A temporary flight restriction in still place for the area over the fire Wednesday.
For more information, check the Taylor County Sheriff's Office's Facebook page.