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The Post Fire Assessment Team arrived at the Chalk Mountain Fire yesterday afternoon and conducted structural assessments in the fire area through this afternoon. They reported a total of 16 homes lost, with 5 additional homes damaged. This count does not include non-residences, outbuildings, or other structures. 

Fire fighters are continuing to construct line, with a focus on the northeast portion of the fire where the majority of fire activity is present. Aerial resources began assisting ground crews at about 1030am. By 2pm today, the Very Large Air Tanker (VLAT) out of Austin and Large Air Tankers (LATs) out of Abilene dropped over 60,000 gallons of retardant in near the northern and eastern areas of the fire.
After a mapping mission on the Chalk Mountain Fire this morning, the fire’s size has been updated to 6,339 acres. Containment remains at 10%.  

Closures/Evacuations 
On July 19, The Hood County Judge issued a mandatory evacuation for the area of Hutchinson, Coleman Ranch Road, Rock Church Highway, and Nocal in Tolar, however, the evacuation order has since been rescinded. The Somervell Sheriff’s Office recommended residents north of 67 and west of 56 evacuate on July 18, 2022. The Somervell County Expo Center is open and available for residents affected by the fire with food and sleeping arrangements. FM 205 from CR 1008 to FM 51 is currently closed due to fire activity in the area. 

Special Announcements: 
A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in place over the fire area. Unauthorized aircraft, including drones, near wildfires could cause injury or death to firefighters and results in a suspension of all aerial firefighting until unauthorized aircraft leave the area. This hampers crews fire suppression abilities and can result in uncontrolled fire growth.