Wildfires force closure and evacuation of Palo Duro Canyon State Park

Palo Duro Canyon State Park was closed to entry and evacuated as wildfires pushed in from the west, forcing travelers with May 15 and May 16 reservations to make new plans fast. All trails were shut down, and park officials said the park remained closed on May 16 while evacuated visitors were allowed back in to retrieve belongings.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department said at 5 p.m. May 15 that the evacuation was ordered because of fires advancing from the west, including the Hunggate Fire and the Chocolate Chip Fire. Texas Game Wardens and Texas State Park Police were assisting local law enforcement as the park shut down access across one of the Texas Panhandle’s most popular hiking, camping and scenic-drive destinations.

Reservation holders were not left guessing. Park officials said visitors booked for May 15 and May 16 were being contacted, a key step for anyone who had planned a day trip, campsite, or weekend stop in Palo Duro Canyon. By May 16, the closure was still in place in coordination with local emergency management and law enforcement, so any trip built around the canyon had to be put on hold.

The wider fire situation across the Panhandle made that disruption even more severe. The Texas A&M Forest Service reported the Hungate Fire at 14,000 acres and 50% contained on May 16, after earlier reporting it at the same size and 40% contained as mapping was refined. Other fires were burning across the region too, including the Western Fire in Randall County at 1,137 acres and 100% contained, the Shifty Fire in Potter County at 5,277 acres and 100% contained, the Cherokee Fire in Briscoe County at 2,500 acres and 100% contained, the Ox Bow Fire in Hall County at 2,000 acres and 60% contained, the Chainey Mountain Fire in Hall County at 600 acres and 75% contained, the Roman Fire in Hartley County at 6,294 acres and 100% contained, and the Line Fire across Quay, Oldham and Hartley counties at 23,000 acres and 100% contained.

For travelers already headed toward Amarillo, Canyon, and the surrounding Texas Panhandle, the immediate takeaway was simple: Palo Duro Canyon was off the table, and the road map around it was changing with the fire lines. With evacuations and road closures affecting Randall County and nearby areas, the canyon closure was not just a park interruption, it was part of a much larger emergency still reshaping travel across the region.