Firefighters in drought-stricken Texas are struggling to contain a 26km-wide (16-mile) wildfire that has destroyed about 500 homes.

Officials said the fire had grown considerably on Monday and was now burning on 25,000 acres.

The governor of Texas, Rick Perry stopped presidential campaigning and said the next 48 to 72 hours would be crucial.

Scores of fire are burning across Texas, which has been hit by high winds generated by Tropical Storm Lee.

Recent fires across Texas have burnt 3.5 million acres.

A blaze in east Texas killed a 20-year-old woman and her baby daughter on Sunday before it was extinguished.

Approximately 5,000 people have been forced to leave their homes because of the Bastrop fire, which is about 30 miles south-east of Austin and moving away from the state capital.

Texas has been suffering its worst drought since the 1950s.