Wildfires scorched Los Angeles. Could North Texas see a similarly devastating natural disaster?

Wildfires scorched Los Angeles. Could North Texas see a similarly devastating natural disaster?

With tens of thousands of acres burned and nearly 30 deaths recorded in Los Angeles County due to disastrous wildfires in January, fire departments across Texas are considering how to prevent such an outcome in their regions. As of Jan. 21, more than 40,000 acres have burned and 27 related deaths have been recorded in Los Angeles County since disastrous fires — the most devastating being the Palisades Fire — began sweeping the area Jan. 7. Even as Los Angeles authorities continue investigating, they have narrowed down the cause of the Palisades Fire to possible human activity further fueled by the powerful Santa Ana winds and dry conditions. North Texas terrain and climate differ significantly from Southern California’s, but the possibility of wildfires in the Tarrant County area that are as destructive as those in Los Angeles cannot be ruled out, according to Luke Kanclerz, head of the Texas A&M Forest Service Predictive Services Department. Open areas and prairies surrounding Fort Worth contain the most potential for fires to become catastrophic natural disasters, said Kanclerz. The westernmost portion of Fort Worth is under careful watch in the summers due to its high number of undeveloped subdivisions, said Fort Worth Fire Department spokesperson Craig Trojacek. Areas densely populated with drier grasses, such as the juniper plant and bluestem grasses — native to North Texas — provide more leeway for a fire to spread, according to Kanclerz. Fort Worth and Palo Pinto County are some of those areas. About 70 miles west of Fort Worth, Palo Pinto County is home to rocky terrain and dry grasses — and the first new state park in North Texas in two decades. This terrain acts as fuel for wildfires as the landscape is more difficult for first responders to access and navigate.The Fort Worth Fire Department responded to a 1,000-acre brush fire near an Aledo ISD elementary school in west Fort Worth, Jan. 22, 2018. West Fort Worth is most at risk of fires due to the propensity of undeveloped areas. (Courtesy photo | Glen Ellman)Post oak trees are the most common tree species in Texas and can be found throughout Fort Worth. This species also contributes to a higher risk of fast spreading fire activity due to its dry, easily ignitable leaf and bark, according to Kanclerz.History of wildfires in North TexasNorth Texas is no stranger to catastrophic fires, Kanclerz added. While Fort Worth’s infrastructure allows first responders to more easily contain blazes, North Texas has an extensive history of high-impact fires. He pointed to the 1996 fires in Poolville, where the biggest blaze consumed 25,600 acres worth of land and destroyed 65 homes. At the time, Poolville — an hour northwest of Fort Worth — had a population of 230 people, according to archives.Several fires that occurred between 2005 and 2022 in Texas contributed to what is known as a Southern Plains Wildfire Outbreak — fires accelerated by weather phenomena that occur when wildfires are sparked by dry conditions in areas with low humidity and above average surface. Among those natural disasters included the April 2009 PK Complex Fire in Palo Pinto County, where 126,734 acres were scorched and 168 homes were lost.The July 2022 fire in Balch Springs is one of those disasters where grasses in undeveloped areas fueled fire activity, said Kanclerz. Nine of the 26 homes touched by the fire were destroyed.Fire crews extinguished a grass fire Sept. 3, 2023, near downtown Fort Worth. Firefighters remained at the scene as the threat for a grass fire was high due to low humidity, triple digit temperatures and windy conditions. (Courtesy photo | Glen Ellman)“It doesn’t take a large fire to produce a high impact when you have a densely populated area,” said Kanclerz. “(North Texas) has had several very high impact fires that have burned down many structures, impacting the communities.”The Southern Plains Wildfire Outbreak closely resembles the chain of fires scorching Los Angeles County, producing multiple fires that are highly resistant to fire-suppression efforts, said Kanclerz. Aside from terrain, the possibility of wildfires in North Texas and Fort Worth is contingent on the climate, particularly humidity levels. The National Weather Service Fort Worth assesses whether or not the region is facing above normal temperatures and wind speeds. These factors are used to issue red flag warnings, alerting the possibility of grass fires. Fort Worth and North Texas can expect regular grass fires in the summer and spring, said NWS meteorologist Alison Prater. In warmer months, Fort Worth houses drier vegetation and arid conditions. During the spring and summer in Fort Worth, the NWS watches for temperatures of at least 10 degrees above the average, as these conditions fuel grass fires, said Prater. Peak natural fire periods in Fort Worth run from the dormant fire period — February through late March — to the summer, or mid-July through early September. The dormant fire period is just as critical as the summer due to freeze-cured grasses and high winds associated with cold fronts, encouraging fires to quickly spread should one break out, according to Kanclerz and Prater. Forest service professionals also have to stay alert during the summer months due to hot and arid conditions. “There’s always going to be a risk to have a fire in the Fort Worth area, particularly where there is more undeveloped property, but it has to be the right configuration of fuels,” said Kanclerz.Fort Worth’s wildfire preparation and responseFort Worth Fire Department spokesperson Craig Trojacek gave an update during a news conference about a downtown Fort Worth explosion that left 21 people injured on Jan. 8, 2024. (Matthew Sgroi | Fort Worth Report)Trojacek points to the many factors that differentiate Fort Worth’s terrain and climate from Los Angeles County. “We don’t have the Santa Ana winds. We don’t have the vegetation issues that (Los Angeles) does … but here in Fort Worth, you know, Mother Nature, it seems like she’s going to win no matter what,” said Trojacek. Nevertheless, he says the Fort Worth Fire Department is adequately prepared for a fire of any level. “Here in Fort Worth, we’re really set up to combat wildfires in a way here that (Los Angeles first responders) may not have — and not that it’s not under their control, or anything that they can control — out that way,” he said.The fire department’s preparation is largely made possible by city departments, said Trojacek. The water department oversees the fire department’s water supply and fire crews partner with the park and recreation department to conduct prescribed burns.A member of Fort Worth’s prescribed fire team lights the hillside on fire at Chisholm Trail Park in southwest Fort Worth on Jan. 11, 2024. Onlookers at the top of the hill participated in a workshop promoting the benefits of prescribed burns in residential settings. (Rachel Behrndt | Fort Worth Report)Prescribed burns, which the city has expanded in recent years, are one of the many methods the fire department uses to further prevent wide-ranging wildfires. The process calls for burning areas of the city more densely populated with vegetation to keep flora from igniting or fueling fires. As for fire fighting equipment, that is the least of the fire department’s worries, according to Trojacek. The department’s fire engines, ladder trucks and brush trucks make a total of 121 fire apparatuses available for response to a range of emergencies.At one point, the Fort Worth Fire Department had the largest fleet of brush trucks in Texas to combat wildfires, according to Trojacek.The fire department also has crews regularly attend trainings to learn about the various types of fires that could hit Fort Worth, according to Trojacek. Additionally, the fire department houses a wildland crew responsible for responding to severe or fast-spreading fires. “We got a lot of good, positive things going for us,” said Trojacek. Although no Fort Worth firefighters have been sent to assist the fires in Los Angeles, they are on standby should their help be requested, he said.In order for out-of-state fire departments to assist in catastrophic fires such as the Palisades, the governor of the affected state has to issue a formal request for resources, according to Trojacek. Fort Worth originally received a request to send six brush trucks, but the request changed when the state of California requested a different type of fire apparatus. Should the fire department receive a request for assistance, city crews are always ready for whatever the job entails, said Trojacek. “Being in the fire service, you have to be prepared for anything,” said Trojacek. “Fort Worth is very prepared for wildfires and a lot of that goes back to the city being able to provide us with the resources that we need … whether it be a natural disaster or some type of man-made problem.”Nicole Lopez is the environmental reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at nicole.lopez@fortworthreport.org. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.

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