San Marcos Record, San Marcos, TX

Local News

March 21, 2008

Czichos: Massive wildfire accidentally caused

Blown tire, sparks thought to have started blazes

By Anita Miller

San Marcos — Hays County’s Fire Marshal says he will rule last Friday’s wildfires were caused by accident.

Carroll Czichos said sparks were to blame, and a trail of shredded rubber proves it.

The series of wildfires that broke out south of San Marcos along FM 621 (Staples Road) last Friday afternoon charred a total of 856 acres, Czichos said, up from an earlier estimate of 680 acres.

Flames forced the evacuation of dozens of homes in the River Hills neighborhood as south winds gusting to more than 30 mph tore through fields and pastures.

No homes were lost, though some outbuildings and abandoned cars did burn. Three firefighters were treated for smoke inhalation, two at the scene and one at Central Texas Medical Center.

Czichos said county investigators and personnel from the Texas Forest Service found fresh pieces of shredded tire near the points of origin of the fires.

“The reason we’re sure is we found some pieces of tire along the road,” said Czichos, who had advanced the idea last Saturday.

He said it’s possible the blown tire’s steel belting could have thrown sparks that started the fires, or that a part of the vehicle, trailer or farm equipment the tire was on had subsequently made contact with the pavement. Or, he said, a chain securing a trailer could have come loose. And, a piece of freshly torn license plate raised another possibility.

“The license plate might have had something to do with it,” he said, but added, “We don’t know the exact circumstances because we could never find the trailer or tractor or equipment involved.”

Firefighters from several local departments plus Forest Service personnel battled the blazes for more than eight hours. Blackhawk helicopters from the National Guard picked up hundreds of gallons of water at a time from area ponds, and a fixed-wing pilot coordinated the helicopters.

The area was under a Red Flag Fire Warning that day due to a combination of low humidities and high winds that the National Weather Service says are likely to recur during the coming weeks.

Hays and Caldwell counties remain under burn bans.

To report a fire, call 911.





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