Nebraska fire crews head to Texas to help with raging wildfires

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Rural Nebraska firefighters are in Texas to help extinguish wildfires across the Lone Star State.

In a Facebook post Thursday, the Gering Fire Department said crews have been in Texas for the past week.

Texas is currently at preparedness level 5, which is the highest level of wildland fire activity, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

In a recent update, the Texas A&M Forest Service said it received reports of 15 new wildfires on Wednesday that burned 385 acres.

Due to dry air and 100-degree temperatures, those wildfires are expected to continue.

The largest active wildfire – the Shearwood Creek Fire in Jasper County, Texas – is mostly contained but has torched 3,562 acres.