Lives, landscape changed by fast-moving fire
By STERRY BUTCHER
FAR WEST TEXAS – The cow lay on her side, bloated and scorched amid the blackened wasteland between Marfa and Fort Davis. The country had been rendered tenantless and unfamiliar, stripped of yucca and grass or anything alive. Nothing moved, save the angry column of smoke that boiled over mountains to the east and another equally ominous column in the vicinity of Wild Rose Pass.
Wild Rose Pass, seen from Fort Davis on Sunday. (staff photo by ALBERTO TOMAS HALPERN/bigbendnow.com)
It had been a long and difficult 24 hours. On Saturday afternoon, brutal winds pushed a fire from its origin west of Marfa through hills and ranchland, rocketing with tremendous speed toward Fort Davis and beyond. Fort Davis and the surrounding area were evacuated. By sundown, the Forest Service estimated a loss of more than 20,000 acres. Then night fell.
From a vantage point at the top of Golf Course Road in Marfa, the fire line was a brilliant orange stripe that ran along the horizon as far as the eye could see, hypnotic and beautiful. Out there in the dark, Marfa volunteer firefighters bumped along without headlights, spraying water along the line and hoping that the wind did not turn toward town.
“We’re out there behind the spreader dam, just a few hundred yards from Marfa,” one firefighter said while the crew downed burritos during a break at the fire hall. Their hair was wild, their faces smudged dark with ash and only their eyes were bright. “We have to hope that the wind doesn’t turn.”
Most cell phone service went out. Fort Davis and the neighboring areas lost power, which cut off water. Marfa Public Radio was silenced, except for online broadcast. Solid information about the fire was hazy until Sunday morning dawned and the full force of the blaze could be seen.
“There was nothing you could do,” said Fort Davis newspaperman Bob Dillard, as he stood in front of the Mountain Dispatch office. “It moved so fast. It’s just on you.”
The fire that lapped Fort Davis was capricious and hopscotch, consuming some homes but leaving others, even those next door, completely untouched.
Katheryn Milch smelled smoke in the afternoon and wandered the house looking for its source.
“Suddenly,” she said, “that mountain burst into a wall of fire. I loaded up the cats and the dog. It happened so quickly it was incredible.”
The fire raced to her house and surrounded it, but left it unscathed. A few feet away, the garage smoldered, a melted mass.
“After dark, anywhere you looked, you were in a ring of fire,” she said.
Gas lines burned. At one point, an explosion nearby sent a fireball high into the sky. Dillard joined others who were fighting fires side-by-side with their neighbors. Down the lane from Milch’s house, Dillard encountered horses on fire. He sprayed them down; the horses were in dire shape.
“They had to be shot,” he said, his voice catching with emotion. “They had to be.”
The ruins of the McKnight home, in Fort Davis. (staff photo by ALBERT TOMAS HALPERN/bigbendnow.com)
The McKnight house, a lovely old place, was engulfed. On Sunday, set among giant groaning cottonwoods, it smoked and smoldered, reduced to a spectral gray ruin.
Over in the neighborhood called Chihuahuita, fields of tall grass were interspersed with hulks of blackened twisted metal that used to be mobile homes, carports or cars. The Martinez family was out of town when their home place went up.
“My great-grandfather lived here, then my grandparents and then my family,” said Frank Martinez as he looked at the heap that used to be a house, horse pens and an arena.
“This is where my mom grew up,” said family member Rosie Hernandez. “Everything is burned. All those memories.”
It was an overwhelming loss: like others in Fort Davis, the family’s photographs, quilts, books, furniture, clothes were gone – all the house’s contents lost. Not anything remained.
“No one got hurt,” Hazel Martinez said after a minute, with what optimism she could muster. “That’s the main thing.”
A cold front moved in Sunday and the wind that kicked up in the afternoon stilled somewhat that night. On Monday, Big Bend residents awoke to a dusky light in the east, where fires near Alpine continued to blaze. More than 100,000 acres have burned since Saturday. The air in Marfa smelled of fire and, with it, a leaden dread returned.
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26 Responses to “Lives, landscape changed by fast-moving fire”
Thank you for the wonderful coverage of this tragic situation in Ft. Davis and the surrounding countryside. You have done an excellent service to those of us who are on the outside looking in. Many of us are searching for sites around the area that are so familiar to us and/or have special meaning to us. Ft. Davis is very special to me and my family. My grandfather, father & brother are buried in the local cemetery there and we’ve had many friends there over the years. I would still like to know the condition of the cemetery. I was born in Alpine, while Mom & Dad lived at the Observatory. So glad the Observatory was spared. Again, thank you for your coverage.
Touching? I think this writer is pretty morbid. What’s wrong with reporting the facts without all the shock tactics? “The cow lay on her side, bloated and scorched ” It’s uncalled for in this situation and I find insulting. Where’s the compassion? The writer’s last name is very appropriate.
I was wondering if the Bloys Campmeeting property was affected
So much lost. It is heartbreaking to hear what has happened to all the residents of Fort Davis and Marfa. You are in our thoughts and prayers.
We have been praying for everyone, especially all the ones that have lost so much. We are so very sorry for all you are going through.
Bob and Loretta Hamilton
We are praying for all of you and especially the ones that have lost so much. We are so sorry for what you all are going through.
Bob and Loretta Hamilton
I have visited Fort Davis my whole life. My sister Julie McIvor and her husband have the U up U down in Fort Davis. It has always been a refuge from the city life for me. I love Fort Davis and my heart is so sad. I find myself in tears and wish I could be there to help. We are praying for you Fort Davis.
Absolutely the best and most touching piece of writing I have seen ever. Thank you for sharing. I grew up in Ft. Davis and have many relatives and friends there. Lots of prayers for all.
So very sad to know this is happening back home. If I could send the rain from Bellingham, Washington to West Texas, I would. Sending many many prayers to everyone there!
Thank you, Corina, and everyone else for the kind words.
Sterry
Sorry, Bub Evans place, not Clay Espy. My mistake.
Words cannot express how sick we feel for the people of Ft. Davis & those who lost their grasslands & livestock. I was raised in Alpine & Ft. Davis & my grandfather was partners with Clay Espy, who’s home was the McKnights. Spent many days playing around both of those homes when Clay & Jean Ann lived there. At least we have memories without loss of life other than gods animals. My husband & I are working to put together a benifit to help some with the familys as well as the fire departments who worked against many odds without power, electric & late last night, fuel.
God Bless!
Pam C., Alpine, Tx.
Sterry, I have never read an article that moves ones emotion and heartache as much as your incrediable article of such a horrific tragedy did. Excellent coverage. Thank you for reporting with your heart. Great work neighbor!
I saw the High Frontier students trying their hands at the wonders of the coin-op laundramat in Alpine, tackling the job with high energy and focus, well directed and supervised. They were having a good time, doing a mundane and necessary chore. A little shaken and quiet for having gone through their ordeal, but still sounding like teens. Singing a little. They are in good hands.
I’ve been living in the relative safety of Alpine, next door to the fires. I must comment on the beautiful, eloquent, accurate, and heartfelt writing. It captured the entire landscape of this phenomenon — human, land, animals, and the interconnections that mark this place. Thank you. You have told it better than i could describe to my own family and friends, and so now I will send them the link to this reporting.
Wishing everyone there the best. Thanks, Sterry, for making it seem real to those of us far away.
Thanks for keeping us informed. I’m out of town, visiting a sick relative and your reports have helped me to understand the depth of this tragedy and to check on my friends back home. My prayers go out to all who have been affected in this great loss.
This is so sad. My family is from Ft. Davis area and we have a family cemetery between Marfa and Ft Davis and we have no idea if it was burned also. It is a tragedy that so much history was destroyed.
stay Safe Buck….prayers are with you and all in Marfa and beyond.
This is so heartbreaking… my prayers and thoughts are with everyone in the West Texas (my home too)area. God Bless everyone. To the livestock that didn’t make it… so sorry!! But i can tell you that everyone and their neigbhor is praying for recovery and rain. God be with you!! I love West Texas!!
Terrible to hear of this fire ravaging the west; however, I don’t think I have ever read a piece of reporting on a natural disaster I’ve liked so much. Everything – fire, destruction, emotions – so palpable. Great writing.
Thank you, Sterry.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of fort Davis but they are strong and will rebuild stronger
Such a shame! We love the Ft. Davis area, and will be praying for everyone and for an end to the fires!
Sterry:
Excellent story. You described the scene so well. thank you.
Thanks to Bigbendnow and Marfaradio for providing us with up to date coverage. My son is a student at High Frontier which evacuated to Alpine while we are in Ohio. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all who lost their homes.