Hardin and Tarkington VFD's Respond to Forest Fire

TARKINGTON, October 2, 2008 - Tarkington VFD was dispatched around 4:20PM to mutual aid Hardin VFD with a large forest fire on CR2099 between CR2098 and 2107. The fire was in the middle of a pine forest and reports indicate that it was possibly ignited by problems with power lines in the area. Dozens of trees in the area had been snapped in two by Hurricane Ike and the fallen treetops provided abundant fuel for the fire and made firefighter’s progress very difficult. The Texas Forest Service was dispatched to bring a dozer to plow containment lines around the fire, which burned into the night. Fire Department personnel were on scene until after 7:00PM to monitor the fire’s progress.

This was the third fire of the day for Tarkington firefighters. They were awakened shortly after 4:00 Wednesday morning for a report of a house fire on CR2252 east of the Davis Hill Baptist Church. Firefighters arrived on the scene to find fire in the bathroom, which was quickly extinguished before it could spread to the rest of the house. The homeowner had awakened to discover the fire and was able to safely evacuate the home. The cause of the fire is thought to be a stack of papers placed too close to a lamp.

Then, shortly before 11:00AM, firefighters were dispatched to a report of a single-wide mobile home on fire on CR2280. Tarkington Engine 51, with Tarkington Fire Chief Paul Gregory, arrived on location to find fire coming from several windows of the home. No one was home at the time of the fire, which did heavy damage to the living room-area. Quick action by Tarkington firefighters prevented the blaze from spreading to the rest of the home, which sustained smoke and water damage. Cleveland Fire Chief Steve Wheeler was called to investigate the blaze, but the cause is undetermined at this time.

Due to the large amount of debris from Hurricane Ike providing fuel for fires, Tarkington VFD is asking that citizens not burn. Instead, place hurricane debris at the edge of the roadway for cleanup crews to remove.

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