A little more than a week after the “Stinky Fire” started in a landfill, spread to local residential areas and tore through parts of the Texas Panhandle, scars from its destruction glared across Amarillo. Where homes and places of gathering once stood, twisted metal frames and piles of ash remain.
While local firefighters helped save hundreds of homes, many others were lost completely, leaving homeowners facing the daunting task of recovery. Texans on Mission volunteer teams responded as quickly as possible to bring Amarillo residents help, hope and healing.
“It’s a total loss for a lot of people,” said Dave Talbott, TXM team lead. “Even if they didn’t lose their homes, they’ve lost outbuildings and some people have lost animals, so it’s very emotional.”
The fire began May 17 and was one of the three major wildfires in the region, according to Wendell Romans, TXM site coordinator. An estimated 60 to 70 homes were destroyed.
TXM teams who deployed to Amarillo included a fire recovery crew, heavy machinery and chainsaw operators, shower and laundry services, feeding teams, electronic support, asset protection personnel, a box distribution team, incident management, damage assessors and chaplains to minister to and comfort survivors. TXM coordinated with county officials to remove debris from roadsides and prepare properties for cleanup.
Jeff Compson, a homeowner TXM helped, said the assistance made a tremendous difference. He recalled the day when the flames tore through, carried all the way to his property by intense winds.
A former firefighter himself, Compson was attempting to bank the roaring flames with a makeshift firewall to prevent them from spreading to his fields. However, once flames caught one of the trees on the edge of his property, a chain reaction occurred, burning his car, truck, leather shop and more.
“There was no hope of stopping that fire,” Compson said. “I felt depressed because I did everything I could to fight it off.”
Neighbor and friend Clark Jowers knelt amid the remains of Compson’s home, helping his friend sift through the ashes for valuables, such as his military coins. TXM volunteers also caked with ash and soot, were right alongside them, he said.
“I’m glad we’ve got this group out here, because without them, we wouldn’t be getting any of this done,” Jowers said.
For many volunteers on site, the ministry extended far beyond the physical aspect of debris removal. First-time volunteer Oakley Hall said she helped remove metal roof scraps from a property and sifted through ashes for recyclable scrap metal. She also had a heartfelt conversation with the homeowner, encouraging her and lending a listening ear.
“The work is rewarding in and of itself — to help other people,” Hall said. “Just jump in and do it.”
Fellow first-time volunteer Robin Nixon, who also sifted through ashes for mementos, echoed Hall’s sentiments, noting the multitude of ways to help on site.
“We have people doing laundry; we have people feeding us,” Nixon said. “It takes the whole bunch to get it done.”
Team Lead Dyon Drain said while Amarillo residents reported finding comfort and support in the assistance TXM provided, he was amazed at how blessed he felt simply being present, serving and having the opportunity to connect with homeowners.
Drain was working on a property with a tremendous amount of left over metal roofing which needed the help of TXM skidsteers — and God.
“I’m amazed with the efficiency of what happened today at this property,” he said. “We were able to coordinate our efforts under His guidance. When you go to bless others, you receive more yourself.”
As recovery continues with the help of local Amarillo teams, Drain said prayer for the community is needed.
Talbott said he is proud of the volunteers’ efforts throughout the week, and their response reflects the calling found in Galatians 6:10 — to do good to all.
“There are so many people wanting to help in a situation like this,” Talbott said. ‘That’s what we love to do.”
If you would like to become a trained volunteer and be one for the first people to deploy with disaster strikes, you can learn more about that process on our website. Check out the disaster relief work we recently completed following the tornadoes in north Texas here.