WILDFIRES Rising From Jan. 1-June 30 of 2022, more wild and grass res have occurred in Williamson and Travis counties than January-June for any year since 2018.
Density and location of incidents for Jan. 1-Aug. 18, 2022
195
Low Moderate Severe
GEORGETOWN
183
LIBERTY HILL
130 TOLL
LAKE GEORGETOWN
95
Travis County ESD 2
Jan. 1-June 30
108
29
120 90 60 30 0
LEANDER
35
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
HUTTO
Williamson County
183A TOLL
Jan. 1-June 30
79
522
600 450 300 150 0
ROUND ROCK
CEDAR PARK
45 TOLL
N
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
34 local res in the rst six months of 2022—more than any other rst half of the year in the last ve years—there has only been one large incident, a 15-acre re o East Whitestone Boulevard. Similarly, data from the George- town Fire Department show it responded to 209 res in the rst seven months of this year, including 87 res in July. This is about double the number of res GFD responded to in any single year from 2018-2021. Areas that are sparsely populated and less developed, such as unin- corporated Williamson County and the outlying areas in Travis County ESD 2, are where res are eating up more acreage, local chiefs said. However, Georgetown Fire Depart- ment Chief John Sullivan said as more land is developed, res have the potential to threaten more homes.
the next [ re], and it’s not going to stop until we get some rain and until the temperatures change,” said James Mallinger, Cedar Park Fire Depart- ment chief. Wildres spike locally Shane Glaiser, Round Rock Fire Department chief, said in his jurisdic- tion, it only took six weeks, from the beginning of July to mid-August, for the number of wild and grass res to nearly double from 68 to 111. Glaiser said the higher number calls his department has responded to cor- relates with population growth. “You have more people, and so you have more chances for an accident,” he said. Local re chiefs said small grass res are the most prevalent. In Cedar Park, Mallinger said while the department has responded to
The San Gabriel Fire, for example, threatened about 60 homes near Lake Georgetown, he said. From January through July, Wil- liamson County received 692 calls for “outside” and “vegetation” res, surpassing the total number of calls in 2021 and 2019, and rivaling the num- ber seen all year in 2020 and 2018— which had 761 and 736, respectively. Despite this increase, Michael Shoe, Williamson County director of emergency management, said the county has been successful at quickly responding to res, in large part due to state and national help. Shoe said for the San Gabriel Fire, responders from nearly every state in the U.S. were at the scene. “Normally we don’t have this, but because this year was supposed to be a real high re danger for our state, they were all brought in here,” Shoe said.
SOURCES: TRAVIS COUNTY EMERGENCY SERVICES DISTRICT NO. 2, WILLIAMSON COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
CONTINUED FROM 1
in late July just north of Leander. Figures from Travis County Emer- gency Services District No. 2 and Williamson County Emergency Man- agement show 630 wild and grass res occurred within the rst six months this year. The last time those numbers were close to that gure was in 2018, when both jurisdictions combined saw 484 wild and grass res. As record heat and months of dry conditions persist, area re ghters and weather and climate experts maintain the situation could get worse. “Everyone at every level is trying to do what they can to prepare for
Upgrade your fall sports TV experience with a new home theater!
OUR FAMILY SERVING YOURS SINCE 1981
www.georgetowntvandaudio.com georgetowntv@gmail.com
CALL OR COME BY, OR SCAN HERE TO BROWSE OUR WEBSITE
4201 E. University Ave., Georgetown, TX 78626 4 mi E/IH-35 Your Local Home Theater Specialist SONY • Samsung • Klipsch • LG
32
COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER • COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM
Powered by FlippingBook