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McKinney Fire Department recounts 18-day California deployment; city earned reimbursement for 266 engine hours
Summary
Battalion Chief Ben Jones described a January deployment to the Santa Monica Mountains wildfire as part of a multi-department strike team, highlighting hazardous terrain, long travel, mutual-aid procedures under EMAC and 266 billable engine hours reimbursed at FEMA rates.
The McKinney Fire Department on Tuesday described a January deployment to the Santa Monica Mountains that officials said helped California firefighting efforts and returned reimbursement to the city.
Battalion Chief Ben Jones told the City Council work session that McKinney sent a type 3 engine as part of a strike team that included Parker County, Greenville, Allen, Dallas and Frisco. Jones said the deployment was made under an Emergency Management Assistance Compact request from California, and that Texas mobilized multiple strike teams after the state received the EMAC on Jan. 9.
Jones said the fire began Jan. 7 in the Santa Monica Mountains and quickly expanded. "By January 10, the fire grew over to 20,000 acres," he said, and he told the council that "over 5,300 structures had been destroyed" in the Palisades area. He described extremely steep terrain and conditions driven by strong Santa Ana winds and drought.
On Jan. 11, Jones said, a strike team assembled in Bowie, Texas, and the McKinney engine traveled more than 1,400 miles round trip. He described a long, approximately 30-hour stretch of travel and said the team worked 24-hour shifts on the line, doing mop-up, pumping relays and structure protection where feasible. "These homes were fuel," Jones said, describing how wind and flame behavior caused buildings themselves to act as fuel; "these homes were no different than a cedar tree in the path of the fire."
Jones said the deployment lasted 18 days from departure to return and that crews performed 266 billable engine hours. Those hours are reimbursed at a FEMA rate for a type 3 engine, he said, and the city records a net positive after accounting for maintenance such as tire and oil changes. Jones also credited the fleet department, including Duane Farmer, for readying apparatus and said the mission provided training and experience that benefits McKinney.
Jones noted operational challenges in the field, including limited incident-command structure early in the response and crews working extended hours as local commanders organized. He thanked city finance staff for processing reimbursements and recognized firefighters who deployed, including Bryce Furdum and Mike Roberts.
The agenda called the item an update on fire department deployment in response to California wildfires. The transcript records a report and council thanks; no formal action or vote is shown in the provided excerpt.
