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Local firefighters were quick to respond this week when flames broke out near a row of Elgin backyards, tapping into nontraditional water sources to successfully keep property damage at bay.
According to the city’s Bastrop/Travis County ESD No. 1, about 10 backyards in the Eagles Landing subdivision were affected by fires early March 2, just north of Elgin High School.
Officials said no homes were damaged, and no mutual aid was required.
Instead, the agency deployed all resources from its two stations, along with volunteers, to handle the blaze.
“The only reason we were able to handle this effectively was because we have dedicated our department to consistent training on rural water supply management and operations,” ESD Vice President Nick Teague said. “This enables us to fight fires more effectively in areas with limited or no readily available water supply by strategically shuttling water to scenes and establishing our water supply system through the use of drop tanks and other nontraditional water sources, such as swimming pools and retention ponds.”
Assistant Chief Mark Wobus, who teaches rural water supply classes statewide, gained his expertise during 15 years with the Texas Forestry Service.
Both Station 1 in Elgin and Station 6 in Mc-Dade were emptied of personnel during containment efforts.
Teague credited the department’s strategic staffing increase with helping manage both the Eagles Landing fi re and a recent surge in call volume.
“We have bolstered our ranks by utilizing every bit of available budget to increase pay, increase benefits and increase the number of personnel so that both stations are staffed 24/7. We have a crew of three personnel, and a separate crew of two personnel in Elgin at all times,” Teague added. “This strategy, coupled with our dedicated volunteers’ response, has been able to effectively handle the massive increase in volume.”
A crew of two is also permanently stationed in McDade.
While the department is managing demand, officials said resources are being stretched thin. Additional staffing and a new fire station on the west side of Elgin will be needed soon. Fire Chief Chris Botello recently stated the department is looking to include the project in next year’s budget plan.
“If it’s going to take us 15 minutes to get there, we need a station closer,” he said. “We shoot for five, five-and-a-halfminute response times. There’s no way we’re going to make that without a new station.”
The Elgin Police Department reported that all fires were contained about 5 p.m. Sunday, and the cause remains under investigation.
