Spring Fire District Chief Larry Wilkinson commanded a multi-county strike team of more than 20 firefighters deployed to Cotulla during July's catastrophic flooding along the Nueces River, the department announced in a post Monday, Aug. 3.
Wilkinson led TIFMAS Strike Team 181, a unit assembled from fire departments across Fort Bend, Harris, and Montgomery counties. The team staged in Cotulla, a La Salle County town about 85 miles southwest of San Antonio, where the Nueces River crested at more than 29 feet. That's nearly 12 feet above major flood stage and the highest water level recorded there since 1999, according to the San Antonio Express-News.
The Spring Fire Department said Wilkinson led the team throughout the deployment. Strike Team 181 has since been relieved by Strike Team 182, meaning Spring's contingent is back home.
Statewide disaster
The July flooding killed at least three people and prompted Gov. Greg Abbott to declare a major disaster covering at least 28 counties. Texas deployed more than 2,700 personnel, more than 1,400 vehicles, boats, and aircraft statewide, with more than 530 people rescued, according to Houston Public Media.
Parts of the Hill Country and south-central Texas received 10 to 20 inches of rain over five days, with some areas recording up to 28 inches, according to the Texas Tribune. At a July 24 press conference in Cotulla, Abbott said emergency crews had been knocking on doors 10 days in advance, telling residents they needed to evacuate or prepare for rising water.
La Salle County activated its emergency response plan, bringing together approximately 350 personnel from agencies across Texas and neighboring states.
What is TIFMAS?
The Texas Intrastate Fire Mutual Aid System is a state-level mutual aid program managed through the Texas Forest Service and the Texas Division of Emergency Management. Under TIFMAS, a strike team is a specified combination of the same kind and type of resources with common communications and a designated leader, according to the state's TIFMAS plan. Costs incurred during activation may be reimbursable under the State of Texas Emergency Management Plan.
Local questions remain
The Spring Fire Department serves approximately 168,000 people across 62 square miles in unincorporated North Harris County and holds an ISO Class 2 rating. The department has not publicly addressed how it maintained local coverage while Wilkinson and other personnel were deployed roughly 300 miles away.
Costs for Strike Team 181's deployment may be reimbursable to participating departments under the state emergency management plan.
