Hundreds of wildfires have raged across Oklahoma and North Texas in a week-long outbreak, leaving four dead and more than 200 injured as state and volunteer agencies continue to respond.

The wildfire outbreak destroyed over 400 homes, and Gov. Kevin Stitt said 170,000 acres were burned on March 15.

Stitt declared a state of emergency for 12 counties, including Cleveland County, as fires continued to burn across the state.

According to Norman Fire Department Assistant Chief Chad Roney, an outbreak like this is not typical in the region, but with extremely low humidity, any spark will ignite a flame and strong winds cause it to spread rapidly. Often, sparks originate from power lines clashing in the wind or coming in contact with tree limbs, Roney said.

After wildfires began early March 14, the Norman Fire Department was quickly spread thin, Roney said. The department didn’t have the resources to respond to the amount of calls received, and fire departments in nearby towns had no resources to spare, he said.

Red flag warnings were still flying Friday with wind gusts reaching as high 60 miles per hour in the western part of the state. While the state is expected to get a break this weekend, high winds are again forecast for Monday.

“We just kept getting call after call after call,” Roney said.

NFD sent only one unit to each scene, which according to Roney, isn’t typical. However, Norman firefighters were able to respond to many fires despite having limited resources, he said, and many lives were spared. No deaths occurred in Cleveland County.

Over 130 fires burned in Oklahoma on March 14 alone, and Payne, Logan and North Lincoln counties, saw some of the most severe damage. A large red flag warning issued by the National Weather Service extended through  March 21 as wildfire conditions persisted.

The Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management partnered with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Small Business Administration to conduct preliminary damage assessments and determine if the disaster calls for federal assistance. A federal emergency declaration would involve a larger FEMA response.

Keli Cain, public affairs director for the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management, said if the state doesn’t qualify for federal assistance, it will continue to rely on volunteer organizations and donations to meet wildfire survivors’ needs.

“If there’s something that these organizations can do to help out there, they’re always here,” Cain said. “They respond to almost every event that we have in Oklahoma.”

Matt Trotter, Red Cross regional communications director for Oklahoma and Kansas, said the Red Cross is distributing food and emergency supplies, assessing damage for financial support and opening temporary shelters.

Fire damage is different from tornado damage, Trotter said, because people lose everything and there’s nothing to salvage. He said he has met multiple people whose homes are completely gone, including a man in Terlton.

“He doesn’t have a house anymore, he doesn’t have anything but his truck that he escaped in and the clothes that he was wearing,” Trotter said. “And it’s really tough to see so many people going through such a complete loss and trying to figure out what to do next.”

Trotter said the Red Cross is busy with disaster relief work as fires continue, but people should not hesitate to ask for help, especially as severe storm season approaches.

“We’re here for their community, no matter how long they need us for,” Trotter said. “This is what we do.”

Rob Rizzo, Oklahoma Baptist Disaster Relief state feeding coordinator, said volunteers were operating a large feeding kitchen at Countryside Church in Stillwater, where they cooked meals the Red Cross delivered.

Soon, Disaster Relief will begin the “ash out” phase, Rizzo said, which means cleaning damaged properties. Most home structures are completely gone, and if anything is there, it’s some bricks left still standing, he said.

“(We are) helping people to try to restore their lives,” Rizzo said. “It’s a pretty devastating deal right now.”

Rizzo said people are shocked and grateful for volunteers help.

“We don’t require anything of people, we feed them no matter what,” Rizzo said. “But if they ask us, ‘Why would you do this?’ Then that’s where we would say, ‘Well it’s because of what Jesus did for us that we would do that,’ We’re called to do that.”

Kevin Chinault, Salvation Army division of disaster director, said that the Salvation Army is providing food, housing resources and financial referrals to the Red Cross. According to Chinault, the survivors’ greatest need is to process what happened to them.

“The best, the strongest way people are processing it is just talking about what they went through, how they’re trying to get back to a stable life,” Chinault said.

Stillwater and surrounding areas to the north have the most Salvation Army teams because the need there is greatest, Chinault said. It is providing up to 1,200 meals per day in Stillwater, according to an update from the Department of Emergency Management.

Chinault said he knows of a man who lost his home who often plays the bagpipes to help others find comfort and healing.

“Today he was playing his bagpipes in front of his burnt-out home, and he was playing them for his own healing,” Chinault said. “So that type of thing is just really folks meeting that healing side.”

Cain said those impacted by fires should report their damage online. Agencies are receiving more items donated than they can handle or disperse right now, Cain said, so she encourages people to donate to nonprofits or local funds.

To prevent fires, Roney said homeowners should maintain their grounds and remove flammable hazards from next to their homes, for example, piles of wood or tall grass. Residents should also have an “escape” plan in the incident of a fire, he said.

National Weather Service Norman recommended utilizing NOAA Weather Radio, wireless emergency alerts or paying attention to weather media to stay weather aware in a post on social platform X.

Gaylord News is a reporting project of the Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication.  For more stories by Gaylord News go to GaylordNews.net.

This story was edited by Anusha Fathepure.