AASHTO Journal - How TxDOT Crews Helped Battle Major Wildfire

In late February, the Texas Panhandle endured one of the largest wildfires in the state’s history – setting ablaze more than one million acres across 60 state counties. The inferno forced the evacuation of several small towns, while setting the City of Amarillo – the region’s major urban center – on edge as the flames crept ever closer.

[Above photo by TxDOT]

That’s when work crews from the Amarillo District of the Texas Department of Transportation jumped action to support a wide variety of federal, state, city, and county agencies in the battle against the ever-widening ring of fire – both during the blaze and in the aftermath, as part of recovery operations for burned-out communities.

“Our employees provided fuel, barricades and traffic control for the firefighters during the fires,” said Wes Kimmell, director of operations with the TxDOT Amarillo District, in an agency blog post. “The firefighters worked to stop the spread with water and firebreaks. TxDOT’s rights of way are natural firebreaks and the firefighters often made a stand in our roadways trying to beat the fires.”

The spreading fire prompted the evacuation of several towns while also threatening a nearby power plant, he noted. “They were sending people all over the place,” Kimmell said. “U.S. 60 was closed so there were only a few ways out — the traffic was a challenge.”

In addition, the district had its own roadway damage to address. The fire burned guardrail posts, signs and other installations. Trees also burned and road blockages became more prevalent as the blaze spread. “The fire jumped interstates,” Kimmell noted. “The winds were outrageous and spread the fire faster.”

“It [the wildfire] came close to Amarillo at one point, but the wind shifted,” said Brent Lane, the TxDOT district maintenance administrator. “The city was like an ash cloud. The smoke was everywhere. Pretty scary.”

After containing the fire, city and county officials asked local TxDOT crews to help with cleanup efforts around the town of Fritch, where an estimated 100 homes had been reduced to rubble, according to Lane.

Since TxDOT employees are prohibited from entering private property, the district worked with local and state authorities to plan rubble removal and communicate the action to residents. “Everyone had to move the debris to the edge of the property line so we could haul it off,” Kimmell explained. “We also had to follow state guidelines for disposal.”

Spanning two and half a days, the district’s cleanup effort collected more than 13,000 cubic yards of debris – roughly enough for 1,300 dump truck loads. “We had 128 employees participating in the project, which is a good chunk of the people in our office,” Kimmell said. “We had 68 dump trucks, 14 loaders, an excavator and other equipment. It involved a lot of effort.”

“We are really proud of all our crew members,” Lane pointed out. “They are always ready to stand up and do what’s necessary. They came in without question and took care of the job quickly. The people in town were great, too. They moved their debris to the edge of the right of way and helped us out a lot.”