County prepares community wildfire protection plan

A wildfire can happen anytime the conditions are right. In school, during fire prevention week, we learned there is a fire triangle—fuel, oxygen and heat. If you remove one of the three, the fire goes out.

With wildfires, there is a fire behavior triangle—fuels, weather and topography. To sustain a wildfire, all three elements must be present. Kendall County, Texas, is in the midst of a long-term exceptional drought. In 2022, the county experienced its fourth driest year in the past 128 years and received less than one-half of their annual rainfall. With the extended drought conditions and dry vegetation across 100 percent of the county and the topography of the Texas Hill Country, the conditions are aligned for what could be the next large wildfire in Texas.

The U.S. Census named Kendall County as one of the top 10 fastest growing counties in the nation in both 2010 and 2020. The Texas A&M Forest Service indicated that nearly 94 percent of that growth is in the wildland urban interface or the WUI where homes are built to meet or intermingle with undeveloped wildland or vegetative fuels. The WUI is the most likely area to be adversely impacted by a wildfire.

Firefighters respond to the fire when it happens, but residents have a vital role in preparing for the fire before one occurs. A Community Wildfire Protection Plan is a proven strategy for reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfires and protecting lives and properties. Kendall County Fire Departments are collaborating to develop a local plan to better prepare the county and its citizens for wildfire. But residents of the county have a responsibility, too. Residents are encouraged to attend the next community workshop to learn more about how they individually, and together with their neighbors, can play a key role in keeping their homes and neighbors safe.

The next community workshop is scheduled for Thursday, January 19, 2022, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Waring Volunteer Fire Department at 11 Waring Road, Waring, Texas. Come to learn more about the plan and your responsibilities to prepare for and prevent wildfires.