AUSTIN, Texas — On Sep. 4, 2011, the ingredients came together to create a Central Texas wildfire disaster: a persistent drought, gusty winds caused by a storm system hundreds of miles away and record high temperatures.
That Labor Day weekend saw dozens of wildfire spring up across Texas, the most disastrous happening within 50 miles of Austin.
At the Steiner Ranch Subdivision west of Austin, power lines rubbing together in the high wends ignited a brush fire that spread quickly. Around 1,000 residents were forced to evacuate.
That same day, the biggest fire of all burned in the towering pines of Bastrop County, which was the largest and most persistent wildfire in Texas history.
Flames spread to homes nestled among the trees in and around Bastrop, burning nearly 1,700 homes and businesses and claiming the lives of two people.
There were other wildfires that weekend, too: The Spicewood Fire in far western Travis County destroyed 45 homes and scorched almost 6,500 acres. In Williamson County, the Moonglow Fire destroyed 16 homes.
After the fires were out at Steiner Ranch, residents returned home to discover that the flames had spared many of their homes. In all, 23 homes were lost while dozens more had damage. Luckily, everyone had gotten out in time.
Indelible memories of that terrible September weekend in 2011 remain for all who lived through it. And prayers, no doubt, that nothing like that will happen again.