Fire at House of Yahweh damages buildings

Clyde, USA — A fire burned four mobile homes and two recreational vehicles at the House of Yahweh compound in West Texas before being contained Monday.

Clyde Fire Chief Billy Dezern said the fire began Monday afternoon in one of the mobile homes. Dry grass carried the flames to three other trailer homes and two RVs, he said. Dezern said they had been unable to determine the cause of the fire.

He said there were no injuries.

Firefighters worked for about five hours to extinguish the fire and were able to keep it from spreading to other nearby mobile homes.

The House of Yahweh compound covers about 44 acres near Abilene. The sect's leader, self-proclaimed prophet Yisrayl (YIZ'-rah-yel) Hawkins, is accused of having more than 20 wives and performing polygamous weddings.

Hawkins is scheduled to face trial next year.