Wildfires continue to burn across the Texas panhandle this week, including the Smokehouse Creek Fire—the largest fire in state history and among the largest on record in the United States. As of March 5, the fires have caused at least two deaths, burned more than 1.3 million acres of land, and prompted numerous evacuation orders from towns and facilities across the rural agricultural region.

It will be some time before the extent of the fires’ damage is known, but early reports indicate that they’ve destroyed 400 to 500 homes and structures, killed thousands of head of cattle, and caused service and infrastructure disruptions in dozens of towns and communities. While firefighters work to contain the blaze, emergency managers and community leaders have begun to shift from disaster response to recovery.

To help assess the critical housing, aid, health, and economic recovery challenges facing the region, our team analyzed data from the US Census Bureau and other sources and reflected on evidence from past disasters and identified four key issues that may need to be addressed as part of an equitable recovery.

  1. Housing losses will be felt acutely given the rurality of the region
  2. Households may struggle to access aid because of isolation and language barriers
  3. Households could face significant health burdens
  4. Economic recovery may be challenging

Read the full article about equitable recovery for wildfires by Andrew Rumbach, Anne N. Junod, Will Curran-Groome,Sara McTarnaghan, Oriya Cohen and Amy Rogin at Urban Institute.