Oak Grove fire burns near Wimberley Valley

A wildfire broke out east of Wimberley over the weekend, burning approximately 400 acres and one residence before it could be stopped, according to Hays County officials.

The fire, named the Oak Grove Fire (formerly the Fox Fire), started in the 200 block of Oak Grove Road in San Marcos on Saturday, Aug. 5. The fire spread from 80— 85 acres around 5:30 p.m. to 300 acres by 9 p.m. that night, according to the Hays County Wildland Task Force. By the end of the day on Sunday, Aug. 6, more accurate reports put the fire at 400 acres with 50% containment. The fire reached 90% containment the following day, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.

By late Monday, Aug. 7, more was known of the extent of the damage caused by the Oak Grove Fire. In addition to an unknown number of outbuildings, it destroyed the home of a father and son who previously owned the burned residence but were leasing it from the new owner in anticipation of a move to a new home later this month.

Michael Hinz and his son, Travis, returned to what was left of their home on Sunday and again on Monday to assess the scope of their loss.

Micheál is a U.S. Army veteran and known to the Hays County community for four decades of his metalwork art. A diagnosis of Parkinson’s Disease halted that work, but Michael, who is also battling Stage 4 prostate cancer, said he was writing screenplays, four of which were likely destroyed in the wildfire.

In a telephone interview, Travis and his father said the family is staying temporarily with his sister in Hays County. Another family member has started a GoFundMe account to assist the father and son: gofund.me/a22569fl.

Officials with the Hays County Fire Marshal's Office, the Office of Emergency Management and the Texas A&M Forest Service confirmed Sunday that one residence, as well as an unknown number of outbuildings, were destroyed in the wildfire.

Throughout the wildfire, Hays County Commissioners Court Judge Ruben Becerra was on the scene in his official capacity as head of the county's emergency management response. In addition, crews from neighboring counties and across the state — as well as from other states as far as Tennessee and Alabama — were on site to assist in containing the dangerous wildfire. Becerra provided routine video updates from Friday to early Monday, keeping residents across the county aware of the status of the wildfire and the need for any additional resources or evacuations.

He said a person could feel the heat radiating from hot spots on Monday, and that stories in print could not truly tell the tale.

He added that the San Marcos Police Department, the Hays County Sheriff's Office and the San Marcos Fire Department were all part of the response teams. Sheriff's deputies went door to door to alert residents, and there were at least a dozen evacuations, although at no point was there a general evacuation order in place — only an as needed request to residents in direct danger to evacuate upon request by officials.

Hays County Emergency Management officials stated that as of 5 p.m. on Monday, residents who had previously been asked to leave their homes were allowed back into the Oak Grove/Fox/ Thurman area. Only residents of that neighborhood and first responders (as well as CERT volunteers) were allowed back into the area affected by the wildfire at that time. Hays County Sheriff Office deputies were stationed at key roadways to prevent non-emergency personnel and non-residents from entering the affected areas.

Crews prioritized areas on the northern perimeter of the wildfire on Monday, where access was difficult due to rough terrain and dozers were unable to work. Two National Guard Blackhawk helicopters were expected to fly back over the wildfire to provide bucket drops on flare ups or other hotspots near the perimeters of the wildfire.

Officials stated that critical fire weather was forecasted for Monday and Tuesday with relative humidity expected to drop to 17%, a high of 106° and winds gusting from the south up to 23 mph. A red flag warning was in effect through Monday night.

“Elevated fire weather will continue to align with areas of concern where critically dry to extremely dry vegetation is present on the landscape, resulting in increased potential for wildfire activity for the Hill Country, Cross Timbers, Central Texas, Western Pineywoods and into Southeast Texas,” officials stated.

The Texas A&M Forest Service reported that, over the past week, it had responded to 80 wildfires for a total of 8,521 acres burned. Forty-one of those fires occurred since Friday.

“Due to a significant increase in fire activity across the state, potential for large fires as well as the increased commitment of state and local resources to fires, [the] Texas A&M Forest Service has raised the State Preparedness Level to Level 4,” the agency posted on Monday.

This level, according to the forest service, indicates, “A very high volume of wildfires, including large fires and fires that are resistant to control, is reported daily across the state. The fire environment will support increased wildfire activity and a heavy commitment of state and local resources for long durations is likely required. Continued mobilization of interagency resources and the activation of incident management teams may occur.”

Hays County officials have since recommended that local residents and business owners take the time to educate themselves on emergency preparedness, including preventing wildfires, protecting homes from wildfires and how to help during an emergency.

Hays County Public Information Officer Kim Hilsenbeck encouraged residents to attend the upcoming Emergency Preparedness Fair being hosted by the county on Sept. 9. For more information on the fair, visit haysinformed.com/hayscountypreparednessfair.