Bad day in Oklahoma

I was scheduled to fly today; my CFI said I need some work on landings before
he'd sign me off. I checked ADDS before I left the house, and the TAF said there
should have a 14 knot crosswind component, which would be OK. In Oklahoma if you
can't do crosswind T/O's, you can't fly. When I got the field, the flags in
front of the FBO were furling perpendicular to 17/35. I watch a Hawker takeoff
on 17L and went in the flight school and rescheduled. Bummer, I could fly again
today.

When I got home the news said we had two wild fires in Oklahoma. One in the
south. At one time the fire front was eight miles across. The land to the south
is flat rangeland, and the fire spread fast and wide. The other was in Lincoln
County, which is hilly with lots of trees and undergrowth. The fire trucks could
get in to the fires. They had too wait at the roads for the fire to come to
them.

Because of the winds the tankers could not takeoff form Ardmore (KADM). One of
the single pilot tankers did run off of the runway. The pilot is OK and walked
away. The plane did not catch fire. They were worried that a fire might get to
the other tankers. I'm not clear on the story about tankers.

A fire chief said that not all of the fires out to the south, but they had it
contained. As the news helicopter shows someone's house total involved. Hadn't
heard anything about the fire in Lincoln County.

Me not able to fly today, seem a little trivial.

GeorgeC