After nearly a week to ask if his house was destroyed in massive wildfires sweeping across Central Texas, George Gaydos has obtained the new Saturday: his house was burned in the blaze.
But still, Gaydos - who lives in a hotel with his wife, two children and his father since fuyant fire nearly a week ago – cannot return to his neighbourhood to see what remains of his home.
Fire crews, made progress Saturday fight against forest fires, but still slow hot spots concerns have kept thousands of residents, including Gaydos, to return home.
Tensions flared at a press conference Saturday as some residents shouted questions to the official County, demanding to know when they could return to their homes - or what is left of them - in the area of Bastrop, located about 30 miles to East of Austin.
Bastrop County Judge Ronnie McDonald said officials hope to return other residents as soon as possible, but he did not know how long that would take.
"This is the seventh day, tensions are high," McDonald said.
Texas is in the midst of one of its worst outbreaks of wildfires in the history of the State. A dangerous mixture of warm temperatures, strong winds and a historic drought caused fire Bastrop-area, the largest fire near 190, said the forest service broke out this week, killing four people, destroying more than 1,700 houses and forcing thousands to evacuate.
A blaze of 22,000 acres straddling three rural counties, 40 km northwest of Houston has burned for several days, destroying approximately 60 houses and forcing some people to evacuate. The forest service said about half of the fire was behind the containment lines and no towns or cities were threatened. Most of the houses in the region are scattered in the forest, the ranch and in clusters of small subdivision.
In Bastrop, officials said Saturday that the fire was about 50% of content after almost a week of combustion. Although residents were eager to make their neighbourhoods, Bastrop County Sheriff Terry Pickering said the authorities must be certain that they are safe before residents would be allowed to. Residents of an area of 700 acres which includes twenty houses were allowed to return home Saturday, but other areas remained evacuated: crews worked to extinguish the potentially dangerous hot spots.
"Everybody hang in there and we're going to you at home as soon as possible", said Pickering.
Fire crews continued battling points hot Saturday, but not the major through the night wind gusts expected.
But the authorities also warned that the number of victims of the fire could worsen. McDonald said that expected the number of houses destroyed by the fire to increase the tally 1,400 current that many evaluations are completed. A spokesman for the State team, local and federal agencies also said that the number should increase.
"We have even hit our most difficult region," McDonald said Saturday afternoon, adding that the teams did not have the opportunity to go and "counting these houses or obtain a score due to the amount of heat that is in the area."
In the meantime, residents are staying around where they can - and makeshift shelters in churches, the homes of friends and parents, even cars parked nearby.
"There are some of those who are in fact pick apartments," said Sean McGahan, pastor of the Church of New Beginnings in Bastrop. "If you do not already started it, you are probably behind the curve of.".
Next week, Gaydos and his family will move in a trailer in Bastrop while they decide whether to rebuild. To find out Saturday on a Web site of fire as his house had been destroyed, Gaydos spent much of the last week so worried by his house that he could not sleep.
"You wake up in the middle of the night and you cannot go back to sleep," said Gaydos. "I was will work soon because I am already up.".
Office of the Governor Rick Perry said families whose houses have been destroyed will receive vouchers from the hotel for seven days of a non-profit organization as well as assistance of the State.
The exhibits were relief for Russell Horn, who said the hotel bill nightly $ 104 for him, his wife and two boys had become too expensive. The electrician for 32 years, said their house was destroyed by fire and he had only been able to out door an undershirt and short films.
"There are not too many places, you can go just for that,"Horn said."".
Friday, officials of the White House announced that President Barack Obama has signed a federal claim to Texas. The move allows federal funding to be made available to people in Bastrop County. Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs.
Perry unexpectedly cancelled plans Saturday to visit areas affected by the Bastrop fire and a Conference of press because of "logistical issues" with him arriving in time, but it was in Austin and keep regular contact with officials on forest fires, his spokesman said.
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