The pair last spoke on February 19 when Nathan called to check in on her. “She has been my biggest proponent, sticking up for me,” he said. Joyce would get him ready for school many mornings, he said. Nathan recalled fond memories of his grandparents at the house, where he often stayed as his father worked long shifts. “There was no way she could’ve gotten out.” “The house was gone,” Nathan Blankenship said. The next day, they recieved news that she had died. Her other grandson, Nathan Blankenship, told CNN he and his father tried calling her several times on Tuesday as a massive fire swept through the area but recieved no response. “She used to be a substitute teacher in the area before she became a housewife while Jimmy worked at the local Phillips refinery,” Quesada said. While Thomas didn't identify the victim, the family of Joyce Blankenship, 83, told CNN she died at her house in Stinnett.īlankenship’s step-grandson, Lee Quesada, said she was well-known and beloved in the small community. “We do have one confirmed fatality from the Scotts Acres (neighborhood in Stinnett),” Hutchinson County Public Engagement Coordinator Deidra Thomas said. One person has died as a result of a wildfire in hard-hit Hutchinson County, a county official said Wednesday afternoon. Nathan Blankenship and his grandmother Joyce Blankenship in 2015. "A house is a house, but we're all together and that's where home is." "I keep telling myself to feel thankful and blessed that the fire did not spread in the night when we were sleeping," McCain said. For now, they have several family members to rely on for a safe place to stay. He fears that whatever the family's fire insurance covers will be used to pay the mortgage. Her favorite stuffed animal - why didn't I get it for her?" the father said. "Everything she keeps asking for, I ask myself why I didn't grab that. Seeing Addison cry over the home and ask for her burned belongings has broken him, McCain said. "I pulled into the driveway and started shaking," he said. The McCains and their three daughters - the others 1 and 9 years old - were able to evacuate before flames engulfed their neighborhood, but they weren't prepared for what they found when they returned to the home Wednesday, he said. "I want (the) house," Addison says through gulping sobs. Her father consoles her, saying, "We'll get another house, OK?" His toddler, Addison, can be seen crying in the family's car in a heartbreaking video posted on Facebook. But what's really gnawing at him is trying to explain the loss to his tearful 3-year-old. Tyler McCain became emotional as he told CNN he and his family are "living in limbo" after fire reduced their home in the Texas Panhandle town of Fritch to rubble and ash Tuesday. Tyler McCain's home was reduced to rubble as fire tore through Fritch, Texas. Winds will pick up slightly from 20 to 30 mph. An even higher level of fire weather risk may exist because of the combination of dry air along with strong wind gusts peaking as high as 45 mph. Sunday: Above-average temperatures remain, with highs into the upper 70s. High temperatures could reach 80 degrees, and winds are expected to increase to 20 to 25 mph with gusts as high as 37 mph. Saturday: The Storm Prediction Center could declare an elevated risk of fire weather for the area as higher wind gusts and dry air persist. Winds will increase to 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Winds will strengthen to 15 to 20 mph, with gusts up to 30 mph.įriday: Temperatures leaping into the upper 70s, dry air and turbulent winds will bring back dangerous fire weather conditions. High temperatures will be in the upper 40s to low 50s, about 10 degrees lower than the average high for the area this time of year. Thursday: Rain and snow showers are possible, with Amarillo potentially seeing less than an inch of snow. Wednesday night: Low temperatures will be in the low 30s, with winds from 5 to 15 mph. Here's what the weather is expected to look like in the Texas Panhandle for the rest of this week: Wind gusts as high as 45 mph are forecast for this weekend, compared to gusts up to 65 mph during the fire-conducive weather Tuesday. High temperatures are forecast to be between 70 to 80 degrees from Friday through Sunday, similar to temperatures at the time of the most extreme fire growth Tuesday. Poor weather conditions that could fan the flames of the Texas fires are forecast to ramp up Friday and peak over the weekend, according to a forecast from the National Weather Service in Amarillo.įollowing a cold front Tuesday night that quelled the growth of the fires, providing a slight reprieve for firefighters, gusty winds and dry air are expected to return to the Texas Panhandle through the weekend. Damage to a property burned by the Smokehouse Creek Fire is seen on February 28, in Canadian, Texas.
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