The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is reporting that 95-percent of Bastrop State Park has been destroyed by fire. The efforts of firefighters, TPWD employees and the local community have saved all but three historical buildings in the park by battling the out-of-control fire.
The fire in Bastrop County has destroyed more than 1,000 homes as of Wednesday morning, including those of state park employees that were fighting the blaze. After days of zero-percent containment, the fire is 30-percent contained according to the Texas Forest Service.
Mike Cox, TPWD spokesman reported that most of the buildings in the state park were built in the 1930’s by the Civilian Conservation Corps. These buildings are mostly undamaged by fire, including the 13 historical cabins and the bathhouse.
One of the park’s overlook buildings in the north end of the park and another in the southeast end of the park have been destroyed. A third building, known as the Rain Shelter, near the Copperas Creek campground was also destroyed according to Cox.
Bastrop State Park is also a primary habitat of the Houston Toad, with 2,000 toads living in Bastrop County, in an area known as the Lost Pines area. “It looks like they have lost most of their habitat,” Cox stated, “Biologists will be doing an assessment” of the toad’s demise. The Lost Pines area makes up 124,000 acres and is the primary habitat to the largest known population of the toad.
Bastrop State Park is a 5,926-acre park. A popular destination for backpacking, camping, canoeing, hiking and interpretive programs. Fishing is a favorite for visitors along the Bastrop State Park Lake. The park also boasts a swimming pool that is a popular place to cool off in the summer after hiking or biking on some of the park’s 10.5 milesof trails.
The Bastrop County fire is one of eleven wildfires currently burning in Texas. The year-long drought in the state is taking the blame for the destruction. The drought of 2011 has affected more that 81-percent of the state, forcing Governor Rick Perry to temporarily abandon the presidential campaign trail to coordinate emergency and relief efforts.
Resources
Bastrop State Park Official Site
Friends of the Lost Pines State Parks
Official Guide to Texas State Parks
The Frogs and Toads of North America
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