BASTROP, Texas, Sept. 11 (UPI) -- With the Bastrop fire complex in Texas about 50 percent contained, authorities Sunday announced a plan to start letting people return to their properties.
Bastrop County Sheriff Terry Pickering said at a news conference that a re-entry plan has been established to allow only registered residents with placards re-entry to certain subdivisions this week.
"The goal is that all areas will be opened only to registered residents with placards by Thursday," the Texas Forest Service said in a release on its Web site.
"Firefighters and utility crews are working as quickly and as safely as possible to secure the area so residents can safely return to their property. Hot spots and other hazards still exist within the perimeter. Firefighters are working day and night shifts extinguishing hot spots and patrolling the area to ensure fire does not flare up."
The forest service also said utility crews were repairing damaged power lines and water lines had been re-established in 70 percent of the area affected by the fire southeast of Austin.
Austin's KVUE-TV reported Bastrop officials said eight people were unaccounted for, though they emphasized it does not mean there have been any deaths.
The Austin American-Statesman reported officials said the Bastrop fire had burned 1,554 homes and 2,800 residences were without power. More than 34,000 acres had been blackened.
The National Weather Service had no red-flag advisories posted in central Texas Sunday; however, the drought-stricken area was expected to see yet another day of sizzling temperatures, and air-quality alerts were in effect in Austin.
Evacuees at the Bastrop convention center were happy to hear that Washington had declared a major disaster in their area; however, the American-Statesman said the strain seemed to be showing on some people.
There was particular frustration among the crowd as they waited for a target date for the evacuations to be lifted, and allowing insurance adjusters to visit burned-out neighborhoods while the homeowners were still being kept out.
