A call went out Tuesday morning at approximately 1:00 a.m. for the SS VFD to respond to a structure fire on Annex St. in San Saba.
San Saba police Department were the first on the scene.
Because our firefighters are volunteers, they are not at the firehouse waiting to respond to a call. As soon as they hear the ‘tone’ on the radio, they jump into action - no matter the time of day. Yes, even at 1:00 a.m. They meet at the firehouse, get their gear, and then they are on their way to the emergency.
When they arrived at the fire, the flames were already coming out of the attic. They immediately called out for backup and a pumper truck. Richland Springs and Cherokee VFDs responded.
The VFD representative stated the temperatures were extremely cold, in the 20s. The water was on constantly - aimed at the fire. However, the spray was landing back on the firefighters and turning to ice. He said they were completely covered in ice from the spray. These folks were out there for hours and hours in frigid weather with cold water being sprayed on them. He noted these conditions made it extremely difficult to fight the fire that night. But - they did not stop until the fire was out.
Those are your volunteer firefighters.
The SS VFD representative also noted that even though there were three VFD’s at the scene, they came together and worked as one team seamlessly. He is so thankful for these volunteers who give up their time. When the extra fire units are called in - they have even farther to go to get to the fire and then even farther to go to get back to their firehouse.
The SS FVD representative stated the firefighters fought the fire until around 5:30 a.m. They then took a break to go back to the firehouse to get everything in order and returned to the fire at 6:30 a.m. to make sure it was completely out and no reigniting of embers would happen.
Hamilton EMS was also on the scene and stood by in case of any injuries. They were released from the scene about 3:00 a.m.
San Saba Sheriff’s Department and San Saba Police Department were on scene blocking any traffic and keeping citizens at a safe distance from a dangerous situation.
Thankfully, the pumps did not stop working in the extremely cold temperatures. The VFD is very thankful they had the proper equipment to fight this fire and others.
The house was a total loss, but thankfully, no one was hurt. The family was able to get out okay. Everything in the house was lost. To see how you can help them out, see the post on the Cherokee VFD Facebook page.
The cause of the fire is still unknown. As more information is provided, we will pass it on to our readers.