Unregulated Oilfield Power Lines Suspected of Sparking Recent Panhandle Wildfires

When a spate of wild fires tore across the Texas Panhandle in February and scorched 20,000 acres of Craig Cowden’s ranch near Skellytown, he decided he had had enough. Cowden took on a second unofficial job: looking for possible fire hazards on his family land, including checking on the electric lines that power oil and gas equipment.