Fort Davis sees calm after chaos

FORT DAVIS If not for the hundreds of firefighters, emergency workers and volunteers, and the smoke continuing to billow over the mountains above, one might not realize there was 100,000-acre fire near the town of Fort Davis.

People appeared unworried Monday, focused on the task of putting out the fire and assisting those who fought it as well as those whose property had already been caught by it.

Since Saturday morning, the Rockhouse fire that started southwest of Marfa has burned between 80,000 and 100,000 acres between Marfa, Fort Davis, Alpine and threatening Balmorhea spokesman Oscar Mestas with the Texas Forest Service said. He said an update was expected this Tuesday morning.

The fire, which began Saturday and was completely uncontrolled for much of the weekend, appeared to have been somewhat tamed by firefighting efforts Monday. Smoke was lighter and appeared to have thinned as dusk fell.

The devastation left behind has been immense; satellite photos showed where the fire had moved north from near Marfa leaving a scar that spared Fort Davis after threatening it earlier.

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” State Representative Pete Gallego said as he toured the area with Texas’ first lady Anita Perry, who called the fire “devastating.”

Derrick Nahill is a Fort Davis Volunteer Firefighter started working the fire Saturday when it started southwest of Marfa. He said the weather conditions quickly meant the fire was completely out of their control.

"Once the wind caught it, it was like Armageddon," Nahill said.

He said worked the fire until 3:30 a.m. Sunday, which meant he got off early; others kept going until daybreak.

The fire has burned about 24 homes, 16 occupied and 8 unoccupied.

Gena Lancaster, who moved to Fort Davis from Midland in 2001, was in an unfortunate position Saturday. She left her home in Fort Davis around 10 a.m. Saturday to go shopping in Fort Stockton. However, when she was on her way home, she was met with a road block.

“A friend of mine called and said there was a fire,” Lancaster, a teacher at Fort Davis High School, said. “She said that she would get my animals for me.”

Lancaster’s friend was able to get Cricket, a catahoula, her beagle Lucy and Starbell, the cat, out of the house and to a farm owned by her parents on the outside of town. Unfortunately, the ranch was also threatened, so Lancaster’s friend ended up in Fort Stockton at a Best Western.

“They were gracious enough to let me cut them a check because I had nothing with me,” Lancaster said.

Upon returning to her home on Sunday, Lancaster said that she was prepared for the shock, but was still not ready for the scenery.

“When I saw the blackened country side, I thought, ‘This can’t be Fort Davis,’ “ Lancaster said.

The fire also charred several parts of town, and electricity was cut after the fire destroyed electrical lines and utility poles. Gas was also off, and Jim Fowler, a Fort Davis Volunteer Fire Department firefighter, said he was unsure when the West Texas Gas company would turn back on after cutting service Saturday.

But as of Monday evening, the town has been taken off of generator power and has been put back on grid power, Fowler said. According to an American Electric Power news release, 600 homes were still without power and their goal was to have 90 percent of homes back with power by midnight Wednesday.

Fort Davis the current home to about 150 firefighters, with more on the way. Units from the Texas Forest Service, the National Forest Service, numerous local fire volunteers, the Texas Department of Public Safety officers and the Border Patrol have responded to help the town in its time of need.

Since Saturday, there has been no reported loss of life, but Fowler said that one firefighter was injured Sunday and was taken to Big Bend Regional Medical Center for treatment. He has since been released and was back with his unit.

Other than the buzz at the Jeff Davis County Emergency Services building, where the command center is located, the town of Fort Davis has remained relatively quite.

Most businesses were closed Monday, some still displaying their “Welcome bikers” signs that once greeted the bikers from around the state who showed up last weekend to participate in the Fort Davis Hammerfest race that was canceled due to the smoke and fire.

One business, the Fort Davis Drug Store Hotel and Restaurant located on State Street, was open and serving sandwiches and water to whoever walked in looking for food.

“It’s just about hospitality,” Alice Hack, a worker in the restaurant said. “In Fort Davis, everyone is family.”

Residents said although some people have lost their homes, no one is homeless.

Lancaster said that she is currently staying with a friend and is hoping to get things settled quickly so she can eventually move back onto her property.

“A house is a house and things are things, but we’re blessed with the people out here,” Lancaster said.

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