Austin-area wildfire has destroyed an apartment building and damaged at least 3 others

By Joe Sutton and Amanda Jackson, CNN

(CNN) — A brush fire burning in an Austin, Texas, suburb has destroyed one apartment building, damaged others and prompted evacuation orders Tuesday, officials said.

The blaze had charred about 50 acres in Cedar Park, a city of about 77,000 people roughly 20 miles north of Austin, as of early Wednesday, the Texas A&M Forest Service said. The fire, which started Tuesday and was named Parmer Lane for a nearby street, was about 15% contained, the service said.

One apartment building was destroyed and three others were damaged by the fire, Cedar Park officials said in a news release Tuesday. An apartment complex, 95 townhomes and nearby businesses were ordered to evacuate.

“This is a large fire and it is impacting structures. There is also significant impact to traffic. Avoid the area,” Cedar Park police said in a tweet Tuesday evening.

One minor injury has been reported, according to city officials. Red Cross was setting up shelter for people who were displaced, the city said.

The fire was reported after 6 p.m. local time Tuesday, and crews found apartment buildings were burning, the city said in the news release.

More than 20 state and local agencies responded to the fire, the news release adds.

Elsewhere, wildfires on the island of Maui in Hawaii sent people scrambling into the ocean for safety Tuesday and prompted evacuation orders, with the blazes fueled in part by Hurricane Dora.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2023 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Aya Elamroussi contributed to this report.