Fire burns 17 acres of woods in White Oak Estates

THE WOODLANDS, Texas - A fire erupted, burning 17 acres near White Oak Estates, just east of Oak Ridge, on April 23 though no one was injured.

Firefighters received a call at about 2:30 p.m., Saturday, and found 17 acres of brush and woods burning between Imperial Oaks and White Oak Estates, said Chief Robert Hudson with the South Montgomery County fire department.

There was no known cause for the fire Monday, he said. Three homes near the fire were evacuated but flames did not damage the houses, Hudson said.

"That area is not frequented by people, there are no campfires there and there wasn't any lightning," Hudson said.

Firefighters from Montgomery County as well as Needham, Timber Ridge, The Woodlands and the Texas Forest Service worked for a little more than two hours to contain the blaze, he said. A helicopter was brought in from Huntsville and dropped about 6,000 gallons of water on the flames.

"Because of the size of the fire and the heavy brush it was in, the area will still be smoldering for several days," Hudson said.

It is the second fire in the neighborhoods in the past week; on April 19 a brush fire burned about 10 acres and some machinery at a mulching business. No one was injured in that fire either.