Three people are dead in Gray County and a new death has now been confirmed in Lipscomb County following Texas Panhandle wildfires that burned through the night.
Cody Crockett and Sydney Wallace in Gray County were confirmed dead by Sandi Martin, Gray County’s Emergency Management Coordinator.
Sloan Everett, a rancher, is the third Gray County fire victim, according to a family friend.
Cade Koch, 25, has been confirmed as a fire victim in Lipscomb County, his wife Sierra Koch told the Amarillo Globe-News. When the smoke cleared authorities found his abandoned car on Highway 305 and his body was not far from the auto, she said, about 5 miles north of the Hemphill County line.
Judge Richard Peet said the Gray County trio died while trying to save cattle, one who suffered smoke inhalation and two from burns.The first of the three died at 10 p.m., according to Martin, while the two burn victims were airlifted to Amarillo and Lubbock but did not survive. One victim died while en route to a hospital.
Peet, who was working from the Gray County Office of Emergency Management, said the fires in the county were called under control at 4:15 a.m. Early estimates from county officials say more than 100,000 acres were burned. Gray County officials said more than a dozen different agencies were called to the area to assist in the fight.
No known structures were lost, and officials are working to confirm how much cattle may have been lost in the fire.
The fire started around 4 p.m. in southeast of Pampa, and shortly after residents in the area were advised to evacuate.
State fire marshals will be in Gray County today to investigate the deaths, and to determine what caused the wildfires to start.