Vast Blaze Near Austin Sets Record.

BASTROP, Tex. -- Bob and Margaret Austin stared at the hills in the distance, where towering plumes of white and black smoke stretched across the blue horizon Tuesday. They had survived the flames of a wildfire, but they had no idea if their house had been as lucky. About 11 a.m. Monday, a state trooper told the couple that they had 15 minutes to evacuate. They filled their two vehicles with her grandmother's jewelry, his firearms and their mortgage papers and photo albums, along with a puppy and a kitten. They realized later that they had left behind the urn with Mr. Austin's mother's ashes. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]