BRADENTON – Two Manatee County firefighters have been deployed to North Texas to assist with the ongoing response to the Ross Fire, which is one of the largest wildfires in North Texas history.
The deployment was announced in a West Manatee Fire Rescue District (WMFR) press release issued Friday, Aug. 28.
As part of the Florida Emergency Support Team 1101, Lt. Cameron Frazier, a firefighter from the West Manatee Fire Rescue District, and Capt. Andrew Griffon, a firefighter from the North River Fire District in Palmetto, are traveling with a North River Fire District brush truck and may remain deployed in Texas for up to 14 days.
The Ross Fire began Aug. 24 near Palo Pinto, Texas, and rapidly spread. As of Friday morning, Aug. 28, the fire had burned approximately 85,000 acres and was 26% contained, according to the most recent incident information. The fire has damaged and destroyed structures, forced evacuations and required a large-scale response involving local, state and national mutual-aid resources. No injuries have been reported.
Frazier and Griffon are part of a larger Florida deployment that includes fire apparatus and personnel from departments across the state. Their assignment represents Manatee County’s contribution to the interstate mutual-aid response supporting Texas firefighters.
“When communities face an incident of this magnitude, the fire service responds without regard to jurisdiction or state lines,” WMFR Fire Chief Ben Rigney said. “We are proud to have one of our firefighters representing West Manatee Fire Rescue and Manatee County as part of this deployment. Cameron is taking the training, professionalism and commitment of our organization with him to Texas, and our priority is supporting the mission and bringing everyone home safely.”
For WMFR, the deployment also reflects the value of maintaining personnel trained and prepared to operate as part of larger regional, state and national emergency responses.
“Major disasters require resources from well beyond the community where they occur,” WMFR Fire Marshal Rodney Kwiatkowski said. “Today Florida firefighters are answering the call in Texas; tomorrow it could be Florida that needs assistance. We are proud that West Manatee Fire Rescue has personnel capable of stepping forward when that call comes.”
West Manatee Fire Rescue will continue to support the deployment efforts throughout the assignment.
