Bastrop County Complex fire
| Bastrop County Complex Fire | |
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Smoke from the wildfire rising over Texas State Highway 71 near Bastrop on September 5, 2011.
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| Location | Bastrop County, Texas |
| Coordinates | 30°09′N 97°14′W / 30.15°N 97.23°WCoordinates: 30°09′N 97°14′W / 30.15°N 97.23°W |
| Statistics | |
| Cost | $325 million |
| Date(s) | September 4, 2011 – October 10, 2011 |
| Burned area | 34,356 acres (139 km2) |
| Cause | Sparks from damaged power lines |
| Buildings destroyed |
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| Fatalities | 2 |
| Map | |
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The Bastrop County Complex fire was the most destructive wildfire in Texas history, striking areas of Bastrop County in September and October 2011. Three separate fires started on September 4, 2011, as a result of strong winds caused by nearby Tropical Storm Lee, and merged into one large blaze that burned east of the city of Bastrop. Two people were killed by the fire, which destroyed 1,673 homes and inflicted an estimated $325 million of insured property damage. The fire furthermore caused severe damage to Bastrop State Park and the ancient Lost Pines Forest. After being largely contained in late September, the fire was declared controlled on October 10. The fire moved underground later in October and was finally extinguished on October 29.
In the months before the Bastrop County Complex fire, Texas was affected by a series of wildfires amid several distinct record-breaking meteorological conditions conducive to combustion. During 2011, Texas endured its most severe single-year drought since the 1950s, received the lowest single-year rainfall since 1895, and experienced the hottest June–August period of any U.S. state at any point in time on record – exceeding that of even the Dust Bowl of the 1930s.
Circumstances were further exacerbated by Tropical Storm Lee, which produced strong winds over the Labor Day weekend, creating ideal conditions for wildfires to spread. Between September 4 and September 6, reports indicated that 63 new fires were started. On September 6, the Texas Forest Service released a statement, describing the fire's behavior as "unprecedented" and stating that "no one on the face of this Earth has ever fought fires in these extreme conditions".
On the afternoon of September 4, two fires started near Bastrop State Park: one in the community of Circle D-KC Estates and the other four miles north. Fire officials later stated that the likely cause of the blaze was sparks from electric power lines – 30-mile-per-hour gusts of wind on September 4 apparently toppled trees which tumbled into electrical lines at the two initial locations, creating sparks that fell onto and ignited the dry grass and leaf litter below.
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