(Photos) Round Rock, TX- Major Brush Fire 8-25-11

[x635 4,066]

On my way home today northbound on I-35 service road, I saw a small plume of smoke. I looked over and saw a brush fire growing with heavy fuel and light wind gusts propelling the fire. No PD of FD on scene yet. Given the amount of smoke and the fact a brush unit was putting out a fire on the other side of the highway, I assumed 911 had been called.

The staff of the cabinet store were trying to keep the fire back with garden hoses and fire extinguishers. I also saw a large propane tank. I quickly turned around, parked my car in a safe spot, and told the PD that there was a propane tank involved. I shouted to the people to get away from the fire and come to the front of the building. The owner let me know that there was another large propane tank in the back of the facility. Upon arrival of the first due engine, I let the officer know about this, and they made maneuvers to keep the fire away from the building as much as possible. They did not have a water supply besides the onboard tank, and later on in the incident mutual aid engines had to relay pump with 5 inch hoses for about half a mile, to the nearest hydrant south of the fire. Until then, most departments relied on their booster tankers. Round Rock FD, an urban department, has a tanker that responds with its brush truck. This water was kept to protect the building. Star Flight, our EMS-Fire-Rescue helicopter, provided aerial surveillance to the IC, and then initiated water drops. As of this writing, the fire is almost 100% contained, but that does not mean the fire is extinguished.

The following link contains the entire set of my photos:

x635Photos-Goldstar Brush Fire 8-25-11 Complete Set Of Photos Click Here

The following link contains the entire set of my photos:

http://www.emtbravo.com/texas/incidents/goldstarfire.html

[FFEMT150 214]

Great shots Seth. Happy you were able to get some pics of those BRATs working!

[x635 4,066]

Great shots Seth. Happy you were able to get some pics of those BRATs working!

Thanks! I wish I could have gotten better shots of it working, but it went charging into the heavy smoke and fire area and effectively knocked down a large portion of the fire.

It's not a BRAT though. It's a Siddons Skeeter t5, which is our Texas Pierce dealer's version of the BRAT.

https://www.facebook.com/skeeterbrushtruck?v=wall

[Guest Photounit]

Nice shots Seth! Thanks for sharing.......

[FDNY 10-75 640]

Nice Shots!

[efdcapt115 1,511]

Seth on the scene! Found a news article for ya; you didn't mention "Pflugerville F.D."? Seth how could you? lol Nice job with the camera.

http://austin.ynn.com/content/top_stories/280153/pflugerville-fire-destroys-gold-star-cabinets

[FF398 45]

Seth, as always, great photos!

[x635 4,066]

Here are some aftermath photos. It's difficult to get a good shot of the area involved, however you can make comparisons in my original set. The photo where the double yellow line, it jumped over the roadway. They made an EXCELLENT stop, as you can see. The only structure lost was a rear marble fabrication building of a cabinet shop, which was saved. It's also pretty amazing to see an entire charred field, yet trees that still survive and look like they haven't been touched.

Also, I've added some more photos to my original set:

http://www.emtbravo.com/texas/incidents/goldstarfire.html

[FFBlaser 24]

No fire shelters? Great shots seth.

[sfrd18 360]

Nice shots Seth!