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Fire In Burnet County Burns 557 Acres Around Inks Lake State Park

Texas A & M Forest Service
Texas A&M Forest Service responded to the Park Road Fire in Burnet County late Sunday afternoon.

A wildfire has burned about 557 acres in Burnet County. As of Wednesday, the Park Road Fire is 90 percent contained, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service. The service initially reported about 150 homes had been evacuated, along with Inks Lake State Park and a fish hatchery. Residents returned to their homes Tuesday, and Inks Lake State Park has partially reopened.

Texas Parks and Wildlifesays the fire started on private property off County Road 116 near Inks Lake State Park. Officials say the park will be closed until further notice. People who were evacuated from the park or from nearby homes can go to the Burnet County Community Centeror Black Rock Park in Buchanan Dam.

More than a dozen fire departments are helping out along with local police departments and resources from nine different states.

The Texas A&M Forest Service says the fire's forward progress has been stopped by Inks Lake, but Kari Hines with the service says the rocky conditions have hampered the effort to contain the fire completely.

"The firefighters are working in very rough conditions, which is why we’ve had such a slow progression for containment. Usually, we can get our bulldozers in and push what we call the ‘containment line,’ and this has not been possible on this one," Hines told KUT. "It’s a very steep, rocky area, so we’re having to do a lot more footwork than usual."

This is a developing story. 

Jennifer Stayton is the local host for NPR's "Morning Edition" on KUT. Got a tip? Email her at jstayton@kut.org. Follow her on X @jenstayton.