Sunlight magnified by glass bottles in an open garbage can ignited paper trash, starting a 500-acre North Texas wildfire that destroyed five homes, fire officials said Thursday. The July 18 fire on Possum Kingdom Lake’s western shore, about 70 miles west of Fort Worth, took eight days to fully contain. Chief Bonnie Watkins of the Possum Kingdom West Side Volunteer Fire Department found a trash can packed with party trash that included paper goods, food and numerous glass bottles, according to a department statement Thursday. Watkins concluded that a wind gust opened the can lid, allowing sunlight magnified by the glass bottles to ignite the paper. The fire built rapidly until the fire spilled from the can and spread to nearby cedar trees, the statement said. TEXAS MANATEE IS FLOWN TO FLORIDA WILDLIFE REFUGEE Rich Johnson, a spokesman for the Insurance Council of Texas, a nonprofit insurance industry association, said he had never heard of such a freakish cause for a wildfire. “A fire started in a trash can is one thing, but one caused by sunlight magnified by glass bottles? That’s a new one,” Johnson said. TEXAS LOCAL BOXER KILLED BY WOMAN’S ESTRANGED HUSBAND WHO TURNED GUN ON HIMSELF North Texas has been plagued by numerous explosive wildfires fostered by extreme drought conditions combined with temperatures topping 100 degrees Fahrenheit and wind gusts. Another fire that began the same day as the Possum Kingdom Lake fire continued to burn Thursday about 50 miles southwest of Fort Worth. However, a multi-agency firefighting team continued to make slow by steady progress in containing the Chalk Mountain Fire that has blackened 10 1/2 square miles, destroyed 16 homes and damaged five others. In a statement, team officials said crews had improved containment from 50% to 53% from Wednesday to Thursday and crews suppressed a particularly stubborn portion of the fire with bulldozers Thursday. However, they also continued to strengthen fire lines and attack hotspots as conditions remained critically conducive to ignitions and spreading. TEXAS TOWN DECLARES ‘WATER EMERGENCY,’ TELLS RESIDENTS THAT IT COULD RUN OUT OF WATER The cause of the Chalk Mountain Fire has not yet been determined.
BAR HARBOR — National Park Service director Chuck Sams visited Acadia National Park Friday to celebrate the announcement …
NEWPORT — The Electrical Training Alliance Central Maine Apprenticeship Center is committed to training the electricians of the …
AUGUSTA — Eric Bard appeared in Kennebec County Superior Court Friday morning.
HAMPDEN– The Maine Department of Transportation will temporarily close part of the Emerson Mill at road at I95 …
OLD TOWN–Due to planned road construction, The City of Bangor announces a planned temporary detour for the Old …
EASTON- An Easton woman is facing charges in connection with the death of a one-year-old child. Maine State Police …
SULLIVAN– Students in RSU 24 won’t be going back to school in their new building in Sullivan.
SOUTHWEST HARBOR– Police seized drugs and cash during an arrest in Southwest Harbor on Wednesday.
BANGOR– Fire damaged a unit at the Bangor Efficiency Apartments.
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