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Firefighters
got a break from Mother Nature today as winds were calmer than yesterday. High
temperatures and low humidity kept the fire danger high, but the lighter winds
made a difference. Oklahoma Forestry Services is estimating over 57,440 acres
burned over the last 36 hour period.

???Yesterday's
fires burned actively through the night, but the weather gave us a chance to
get a handle on several fires today,??? said George Geissler, Oklahoma State
Forester. ???There is plenty of firefighting still going on, with some fires remaining
unstaffed due to lack of resources.???

The
largest acreage fire are:

• Buffalo
  fire (Harper County)--17, 280 acres


• Pharoah
  fire (Okfuskee County)??"13,722 acres


• Sand
  Creek fire (Okfuskee County)??"5,239 acres


• Tallgrass
  fire (Osage County)??"3739 acres


• Nuyaka
  fire (Okmulgee County)??"3,417 acres


• Pawnee
  Cove fire (Pawnee County)??"3,420

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The
Pharoah fire, which began six miles east of Okemah, continues to grow and
firefighters will continue suppression efforts into tomorrow. The weekend
forecast calls for some moisture, which will keep relative humidity higher than
the last few days. ???Lighter winds helped today and if the high humidity does
occur we can really get some good work completed this weekend,??? said Geissler.

Reports
indicate numerous structures have been lost during these wildfires. Oklahoma
Emergency Management damage assessments are ongoing.

Oklahoma
Forestry Services is the state's lead agency related to wildland fire
prevention and protection. For additional information about wildfires, visit
www.forestry.ok.gov/wildfire-information.

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