The Austin Fire Department is asking city leaders to let its crews help more with out-of-state wildfires. On Monday, AFD representatives briefed Austin's public safety commissioners on their experience fighting the Carr fire in California in August.
"We called it the grind," said AFD battalion chief Randy Denzer. "It was mind-numbingly exhausting."
Five Austin firefighters deployed with a group of about 100 from across the state of Texas. During the weeks they were there, they worked shifts of up to 24 hours straight.
"It's completely different to anything we're ever exposed with, you know, single houses that burn or an apartment complex, where whole neighborhoods are burning, and putting our firefighters in there and having them operate safely in these environments was a pretty eye-opening experience," said AFD lieutenant Steve Gibbon.