Three grass fires on County Road 267 just south of Brownwood burned an estimated 30 acres of land Tuesday afternoon and evening, according to Brownwood Fire Chief Eric Hicks. Those fires are also being investigated by the Brown County Sheriff’s Office, as well as Fire Marshal Buddy Preston.
“Right now the fire on 267 South, we have the sheriff office’s looking into that, and the fire marshal is also involved in that a little bit, too,” said Hicks, who added he could not comment further. “We are asking everyone to be diligent, keep an eye out and report anything they see that seems suspicious.”
Reached for comment, Brown County Sheriff Vance Hill said the fires are “suspicious in nature and we are investigating.”
What is being called the Gate 8 fire covered 15 acres, the named Power Plant fire consumed 10 acres and the Gate 3 fire was estimated at 5 acres. A fourth, smaller and unnamed grass fire also took place within the county Tuesday afternoon.
“Yesterday a little after 3:30 p.m. we recorded that the first fire call came in,” Hicks said. “We responded to 267 South and upon arrival at that fire we saw other fires farther down south on 267. We split our crews up at that time into basically three separate firefighting crews and then worked the three fires on 267.
“Just as we were starting to finish up the farthest southern fire, another fire broke out near the power supply station on 267 farther north.”
Hicks reported eight fire departments within Brown County, sending multiple units, responded to the grass fires, as did the Texas Forest Service which provided two crews, three bulldozers and engines.
Lifeguard Ambulance was also on hand to make sure crews were protected in the summer heat. CERT, Chipster’s Grill and the Salvation Army provided relief and rest for personnel on hand, Hicks said.
A car also burned at the intersection of Avenue C and 21st Street late Tuesday, but Hicks had no additional information as of Wednesday morning.
On Monday, multiple departments responded to a 25-acre grass fire along U.S. Highway 377 near 3M, and Friday a grass fire in the Shamrock Shores area near Lake Brownwood resulted in a 14-acre area suffering damage as one house/shed burned, and two houses burned slightly but were saved. A total of 29 structures were threatened over five blocks.
With fire weather conditions of triple-digit temperatures, a lack of rain, low humidity and varying wind speeds expected to continue though this week at the very least, Hicks urged even more caution than normal.
“Anything from mowing to shredding, any type of machine operating can cause a situation,” Hicks said. “Right now it’s just about being diligent, prepared and careful. And no outside burning to be safe right now.”
Brown County is currently under a burn ban.
