MERKEL, Texas — Gov. Rick Perry has made an aerial inspection of tens of thousands of acres of rolling West Texas plains blackened by wildfires.

He was flown over the 160 square miles of charred countryside between Abilene and Wichita Falls on Tuesday, joined by state emergency management chief Nin Kidd.

Perry, who grew up in the rolling plains, thanked local officials and emergency crews for their efforts. Even though firefighters were gaining the initiative on some of the biggest fires, Perry said that "our experience tells us that we have a long way to go." He said that every year, his team gets "a little better at dealing with natural disasters." But he appealed to Texans "to continue to be very cautious" with fire.