JARRELL FIREFIGHTER JOINS FIGHT AGAINST CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES

by Charlotte Kovalchuk • photos courtesy Jarrell Fire Department

It was 10:30 in the morning in early January when Jarrell firefighter Tyler Lawhorn got a call letting him know he had been chosen for deployment to help fight the devastating wildfires in California. “I didn’t have a whole lot of time to think about it. I went home, checked with my wife to make sure it was okay with her, and headed to Round Rock to link up with their fire department.”

So began the long 21-hour drive to Malibu with a Texas strike team made up of 22 other firefighters from Round Rock, Hutto, Austin, Bryan, Killeen, Kyle, and Morgan’s Point (near Houston). Along the way, Tyler was reminded of the many wildfires he saw while visiting his aunt in Colorado Springs as well as a pasture fire he helped prevent from reaching residents’ backyards in Jarrell. He wasn’t prepared, however, for the surreal scene that awaited him and his team when they arrived in California.

Texas Firepower

“There were a lot of green areas and beautiful mountain ranges, but once we crossed a certain line, there was nothing but burnt mountains, no greenery, and lots of houses gone,” Tyler remembers. “I instantly felt overwhelming dread for the people of California. Seeing all the destruction was definitely surreal. I feel for all the people who lost everything, and I gained a lot of respect for all the California firefighters who have been working nonstop to get the fires under control.”

The Texas strike team got to work, doing their best to relieve that burden by extinguishing small fires in neighborhoods in the Palisades, which allowed firefighters to concentrate on the much more intense blazes in the mountains. “It wasn’t a glory job but it was one of those things that needed to be done and helped take the pressure off the guys who have been working nonstop for weeks.”

With Jarrell’s fire department expanding enough to the point where it can now send firefighters to assist in largescale disasters, Tyler was eager to go and represent Jarrell. “Being able to deploy from our Jarrell fire department and be one of the first guys to go out of state for deployment was incredible,” he says.

In addition to Texas firefighters, agencies from Oregon, Washington, and Colorado joined the effort to fight two of the deadliest, most destructive wildfires in California history before they were declared 100 percent contained about three weeks after erupting on January 7.

Beyond The Blaze

After two strenuous weeks in California, Tyler returned home for some well-deserved rest and time with his family. He was excited to use his experience to bring back “a wealth of knowledge about wildfires in urban settings to my team. It was a cool experience altogether. I’d do it again in a heartbeat. It was a long time away from home and work, but it was rewarding and to be able to say I was part of it is awesome too.”