Rain-starved: A U.S. Drought Monitor map released on Thursday indicates the majority of Texas is under extreme and exceptional drought
Weather officials say Texas just finished the hottest June through August on record in United States history.
Weather service meteorologist Victor Murphy said that Texas' 86.8 average beat out Oklahoma's 85.2 degrees in 1934.
That Dust Bowl year is now third on the list for the three-month span, behind No. 2 Oklahoma's heat wave this June through August (86.5 degrees). Both states and others in the nation's southern tier have baked in triple-digit heat this summer. Texas had its hottest June on record, the fifth warmest month overall, and July was the warmest month ever.
Oklahoma's July was the country's highest monthly average temperature ever, at 89.1 degrees. Louisiana's heat this June through August puts it in the fourth spot all-time - 84.5 degrees.
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Updated below by our very own Joe Olson - on the front line & YouTube and latest SkyNews report
Friends
After three years in a row of 10" below normal rainfall and this years 23" below normal to date....all of Texas is a tinderbox....
Last night as i drove home from dancing i could see the fireglow on the bottoms of massive mushroom smoke clouds....
From my home i could see the flames in the treetops above the distant treeline....so far 5 miles north of me....
So far over 10,000 acres burned....so far not contained....today 'light' winds from the north....
As Washington said...."Fire is a reluctant servant and a ruthless master"....
So far 3.5 million acres of Texas have turned to smoke this year....it is sobering to see the glow at your door....
A 2" firehose is useless to flames in 100 ft treetops....sad witness to tragic history....
Day 2
Truthfans
In times of disaster Texans do not climb up on their roofs and spray paint HELP....Texans go where help is needed and HELP Texans....after water sprinklying a perimeter around my house i left for the local volunteer fire department to offer assistance....the two 500 acre fires that were 5 miles from my house we contained...but the county to the north had called for volunteers....got there at 2 pm....unloaded trailers full of ice and bottled water....by 5 started loading take out containers with meals for the first reponders....we needed 500 meals in groups of 50 to 100....we numbered the containers
With a felt maker....lined the open containers bottom sitting in the preceeding top and pushed a continous 'train' of food containers down one side of the long serving table filling with small steak, ribs, veggies & roll....about 10 volunteers filled and boxed 500 meals in less than and hour....other volunteers were cooking and bringing local restaurant donated trays of food....we then loaded boxes with numbered dinners into 4 wheel drive pickups and headed for the fire lines....drove thru 20 miles of checkerboard forest fires on both sides of the road....gave half the meals to firemen....half to sherrifs who were manning roadblocks or stagging for mandatory evacutation runs....there were places with flame lies running up big old pine trees along old lightening strikes...the bare resin coated marks now carrying flames to the tree tops....
Several crews had large dozers with 10 ft blades pushing fire breaks....we got back to fire command about 9 pm....fires had started Sunday morning....while we were gone FEMA had arrived and set up.
Several easels with "action diagrams" and "flow charts"....the FEMA man explained to the local officials that there was a 'lack of organization' and he was there to help....he was rather "unpolitely" told...."to pack his shit and git"....(git is Texan for get)....oddly several actual FIRE TEAMS were here from out of state and they said they and NEVER seen a local response like this....
One subdivision had a 5000 gallon propane take for fire pump fuel...flames charred the sides of this tank, but fire fighters managed to save the tank...
Good...if exploded there we be a 500 ft crater where those firemen were standing...
We begin loading the breakfast plates at O-600....and leave command center for the fire line at O-700....
Need to catch some sleep....breakfast comes early for first responders....Happy 911....
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