Fire crews continue to battle 9,500-acre wildfire near Fredericksburg

AUSTIN, Texas — Fire crews in Gillespie County along with the Texas A&M Forest Service are battling a 9,500-acre wildfire north of Fredericksburg that sparked on Saturday afternoon.

According to Gillespie County officials, the fire – named the Crabapple fire – started in the 8700 block of Lower Crabapple Road at around 1 p.m.

By 4:20 p.m. Saturday, the fire had jumped across North State Highway 16 and was headed toward FM 1631.

As of 3 p.m. Sunday, the fire is 40% contained and is now estimated at 9,500 acres – an increase from the 8,640 acres estimated on Saturday.

According to the Texas A&M Forest Service, fire activity has diminished. On the left flank, the fire line is finished from SH 16 to FM 1631. Ground crews continued to work to protect structures, while firefighters continue to build a line to increase containment.

The plan for Sunday is to establish a containment line from SH 16 North to Lower Crabapple Road on the left flank as well as on the south side of the fire.

Lighter winds on Sunday helped crews make progress overnight.

“Crews worked throughout the night battling active fires and flare-ups,” Fredericksburg Fire Chief Lynn Bizzell said on Sunday morning. “They have held the progress of the fire at FM 1631. This morning, TDEM and Texas A&M Forest Service aircraft are supporting efforts on the ground as we continue to work on containment and protect structures.”

No injuries have been reported, but reports are numerous structures have been lost and more are still threatened.

Anyone located in the areas between State Highway 16 North and FM 1631 and between Ranch Road 1323 and Ranch Road 2721 has been advised to evacuate. If anyone has been displaced, a shelter is available at Zion Lutheran Church at 426 West Main St. in Fredericksburg. Officials do not have an estimation on the people evacuated or displaced at this time.

As it stands, the fire has caused two known road closures:

• State Highway 16 North, from Fredericksburg city limits to Eckert Road
• Lower Crabapple Road, from Eckert Road into Fredericksburg

Gillespie County Judge Daniel Jones has issued a disaster declaration, which allows officials to evacuate, close roads and control ingress and egress as needed.

According to the Texas Division of Emergency Management, the state has deployed 750 responders and 300 pieces of equipment to help battle the fire.

According to officials, there are no air quality concerns at this time. Crews are monitoring the weather, because increasing wind speeds become a concern throughout the day.

On Saturday, it was an uphill battle for firefighters as the wind-whipped wildfire tore across Hill Country. Embers from the fire were flying up to a half-mile away and sparking new fires.

“I saw that black smoke coming, and I thought, ‘Oh, that don’t look good,'” Margaret Holland, who lives in the area, said. “Then I heard the other sirens and trucks coming in from everywhere.”

Firefighters dug in for a long fight against the raging inferno. Local, state and out-of-state firefighters are doing everything they can both from the air and the ground to slow its spread and prevent it from destroying structures in the area. A steady stream of planes and helicopters carried out an aerial assault on the fire.

“We will have firefighters and engines continuing to go around and do structure protection and putting out hot spots,” Moran said on Saturday. “We’re going to have dozers on the ground through the night.”

Crews use bulldozers and other machines to get rid of some of the vegetation.

“We use heavy equipment to to work around the fire and, basically cut off the fuel from the fire so that it doesn’t have anything else to burn,” Moran said. “On these windy days we still battle with spots over our lines and do everything we can to to keep it under control.”

Moran said the dry conditions, which have affected brush and soil, have been a jet engine for the wildfire as it continues to spread.

“We’ve got dead grasses from this winter. They’ve dried out and now we have very low humidity,” Moran said. “We’ve got this high wind, sunny days. It’s warm enough and we don’t have the green up yet to to really make these fires slow down.”

Holland has lived in her house just north of where the fire is burning since 1955. The house is more than 200 years old. 

Holland said she remembers the Big Sky Fire in the area two years ago and how terrifying that was. On Saturday, she told KVUE she was praying that the winds died down so firefighters could have a better chance of getting the fire under control.

“We hope for the best and pray that’s all we can do,” Holland said. “I don’t know if I’m going to get to stay here or not. I hope so.”

With the potential for high winds continuing over the next several days, firefighters are watching the forecast closely as they look to get this massive wildfire under control.

“Hopefully by this evening we can get get some dozer line around the head of this fire and possibly get it slowed down at least,” Moran said on Saturday.

That battle continued throughout the night and will likely continue over the next several days.

Firefighting aircraft stopped flying and dropping suppressant at dusk, but rejoined the fight on Sunday morning. Ground crews continued to fight the fire all night long.

The big priorities for crews right now are making sure embers don’t start more fires and protecting properties and structures.

The Fredericksburg Police Department has asked the public to refrain from calling dispatch to ask for updates about the fire.