While a ‘state of emergency’ was declared in the Panhandle town in the northern US state of Texas due to forest fires that started on February 26, Pantex, a nuclear weapons manufacturer in the region, halted its operations.
While the forest fire, which started in a small area in the region, spread rapidly with strong winds added to the dry and hot weather, it was announced that the activities in the factory owned by the defense company Pantex, where nuclear weapons are produced for the US military, were suspended and all employees were evacuated.
In the statement made by the nuclear weapons company on the social network X, “Production operations at the Pantex facility have been suspended. All weapons and special materials are in a safe and inaccessible location.”
While the wildfire continues to burn north of the plant’s location, the company said firefighters and emergency crews continue to guard the facility after staff were fully evacuated.
In the US, temperatures were above seasonal norms in February, while the heat wave affected from the southern regions of the country to the Canadian border.
State officials stated that nearly 5,000 residents were evacuated due to the fires in the Panhandle and that approximately 240,000 acres have been affected since the fires started.
Stating that the fires spread rapidly across the region due to winds blowing at 64 to 96 kilometers per hour, officials said that many roads in the region were closed to traffic due to smoke that reduced visibility.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced in a statement that he declared a ‘state of emergency’ due to the wildfires that have been raging since February 26.
