Bastrop fire: See updated road closures, evacuations in the area
A 150-acre prescribed burn in Bastrop County State Park initiated by the Texas parks department at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday is likely linked to the Bastrop fire that has resulted in local road closures and the evacuation of more than 250 families in Bastrop County as of Wednesday morning.
The fire, which grew quickly in Tuesday's windy conditions, has burned about 783 acres as of Wednesday morning and is 30 percent contained, according to the Bastrop County Office of Emergency Management.
Bastrop fire: More than 250 families asked to evacuate from path of Rolling Pines Fire in Bastrop County
“We do think that it is likely that embers from the prescribed fire were the cause of the fire outside the park," said Carter Smith, the executive director of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
Tuesday's prescribed burn was the second in that area of Bastrop County State Park since the Bastrop Complex wildfire of 2011 that burned more than 34,000 acres and destroyed nearly 1,700 homes.
Bastrop fire: From a prescribed burn to a 640 acre fire: Here's what we know about the fire in Bastrop
Bastrop county officials had previously warned local residents about wildfire risks, but Bastrop County Judge Paul Pape said fire management officials followed the criteria for prescribed burns.
Bastrop fire road closures
Officials initially closed Texas 21 East, between South Shore Road and FM 1441, but the roadway has since reopened the Bastrop County Office of Emergency Management said.
Bastrop fire: Texas Wildfire Incident Response System
Bastrop fire evacuations
Evacuated residents who live north of Texas 21 can now return home, according to Bastrop County Judge Paul Pape.
Residents who live south of Texas 21 may return home after 6 p.m.
Colleen DeGuzman, Andy Sevilla and Nicole Foy of the Austin American-Statesman contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Bastrop fire: Road closures, evacuations
