A wildfire broke out on the edge of the Wimberley Valley, burning an estimated 44 acres over six days. As of the morning of Aug. 9, the fire was close to 100% contained with the hope for the fire to be deemed officially contained later in the day.
Named the Hermosa Fire, it started at around 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 3 in the back of the River Mountain Ranch subdivision.
According to officials, the fire started at the site of new home construction near a pool that was being built at 720 Bluff View Drive in Wimberley. The specific cause of the fire is still being investigated.
“When we first got there, there was a lot of smoke and a lot of fire down by the pool going through the trees and into the side of a canyon,” Wimberley Fire Chief Carroll Czichos said. “It just took off from there.”
Being in the midst of one of the worst droughts in the history of the state, prospects were not good when the fire first started.
“The first couple of hours, I was trying to figure out how many houses we were going to lose,” Czichos said.
There were 14 primary home structures threatened. In the end, only one received any damage at all and that was deemed minor. Two out buildings were damaged as well.
There were many complicating factors to the fire fight. The first was that Wimberley Fire and Rescue spent 14 hours the day before helping fight the Smoke Rider fire that started at the Hays-Blanco County line before pushing north for around 1,200 acres. The next obstacle was the treacherous terrain.
“It was hard trying to get where the fire was,” Czichos said. “It was so thick with brush… Normally you can drive somewhat close to the fire. On this we were pulling 100 to 200 feet of hose and then pulling it back in real quick, moving the truck around a tree and pulling it back out again.”
The bluffs and canyons alongside the Blanco River rise and fall more than 100 feet from top to bottom. Typical fire fighting machinery was not capable of getting close to the fire. At one point, Wimberley fire had to attach multiple hoses together to reach 1,200 feet to try and get water to a fire.
Dozens of fire departments and state and federal assistance began to show up, including North Hays, South Hays, York Creek, Maxwell, Martindale, San Marcos, Seguin, Canyon Lake, Buda, Kyle, Texas Forest Service and the Texas Intrastate Fire Mutual Aid System. Others came in from out of state: Florida, Missouri and Georgia. The terrain made it so difficult that containment lines had to be cut by hand. A crew of military veterans from Pinhoti, GA used pickaxes and shovels to dig a ditch into the side of the hill country to contain the fire in weather that reached as high as 103 degrees.
The fire was also different from typical wildfires. The flammable tender was so easy to catch fire that it wasn’t one massive flame. Instead, it was multiple smaller fires sparking up all around.
“It was almost impossible to get any type of uniform activity to put it out,” Czichos said. “This had so many embers coming off it. Every time an ember landed it started a fire. I was sitting beside a fire truck with no fire around it and when the embers started hitting there were six fires around the fire truck. Every ember that was falling was starting a fire.”
In the beginning, it was largely Wimberley, North Hays and South Hays fire departments that were fighting the fire with many of the firefighters staying on scene from the first 24 hours straight. Other help arrived including helicopters that dropped an estimated 85,000 gallons of water on the fire in addition to fire retardant.
Throughout the fire fight, crews were supported by the Hays County Community Emergency Response Team, which set up at the fire as a place to take care of firefighters coming from the scene and offering respite. A call went out for food and water donations, which was quickly heeded by the Wimberley community.
“Have you seen the Wimberley Fire Station,” Hays County Public Information Officer Kim Hilsenbeck asked. “It almost looks like a food pantry right now it is so full of donations… That Wimberley community, and all over Hays County, you can be divided in any way you want to say but when these things happen everyone forgets that and they come together as one community. You cannot discount that for what a great place Hays County is to live.”
The First Baptist Church took in evacuees from the fire overnight and then turned around later in the week and prepared more than 100 meals for first responders. Local restaurants like Hildee’s and the Wimberley Cafe gave free meals to those fighting the fire. Volunteers helped evacuate livestock from the area to Dripping Springs Ranch Park and Event Center, which was already taking in animals from the Smoke Rider Fire just down US Highway 290.
As the days wore on, Wimberley Fire received substantial assistance. Many firefighters were heading back to the station for a much needed break and then another fire started on Saturday near Fischer Store Road. Even though there was no rain, Czichos suspects that this fire was started by lightning. Wimberley Fire responded in time to keep the grass fire out of the treeline and held the fire down to three or four acres.
As of Monday morning, the Hermosa Fire was deemed at 90% contained with the expectation that it would be finished off before nightfall.
“Thank all the departments that came and helped us,” Czichos said. “We couldn’t have done it by ourselves or even with the local (Hays County fire departments.) It took everyone. It took the backpacks and chain saws and hand tools walking every inch to pull it off… Everyone needs to watch out right now. Avoid mowing outside. Mowers are starting fires. Until we get some rain, everybody needs to be cautious with everything they do.”
Helicopters dipped into the Blanco River 125 times to drop around 85,000 gallons of water on the fire.
This was the second fire over 40 acres in Wimberley this year, preceded by the Valley Springs Fire in April.
The Valley Springs Fire started around 3:45 p.m. on April 7, burning an estimated 60 to 80 acres. The fire was believed to be caused by a mechanical failure on a piece of commercial equipment.
“There was a large concern that this may enter residential areas,” Wimberley Fire Department Assistant Fire Chief Christopher Robbins said. “We quickly notified the state and had the Texas Forestry Service respond with strike teams and dozer teams to augment the response.”
The fire reached the track area behind Jacob’s Well Elementary, but the building itself was unaffected. Classes were canceled at the school the following day to allow the smoke smell to dissipate.
As the fire continued to burn, falling embers caused another fire across FM 2325. Dozens of fire departments from across the state arrived along with three helicopters and three fixedwing airplanes. The helicopters began using large buckets to dump water while the planes dropped a red fire retardant material. Even once the fire was controlled, it took hours to fully put it out.
“We had some guys that were there for 24 hours straight,” Robbins said. “But this is what we train for. We have a lot of dedicated firefighters that want to do the best they can, and they push themselves to be educated and prepared. It showed in this situation.”
