Brave teenage firefighters brave the flames of the largest wildfire in Texas history as the fire continues to ravage the peninsula lands in critical weather conditions.
Nine young members of the Hoover Volunteer Fire Department, ages 14 to 17, have joined efforts to combat the inferno, as only 15 percent of the fire has been contained nearly a week after it ignited. Monday.
Nathan Slater, a 15-year-old member of the team, knew he needed to respond to a call immediately after his Monday classes were suspended due to the fires.
‘It was the first time I went near a fire. “I was excited and nervous at the same time,” Slater said. ABC News.
Two people lost their lives in the fire, which has already consumed a staggering 1.07 million acres or 1,700 square miles of the peninsula.
Brave teenage firefighters braved the flames as the largest wildfire in Texas history continues to rage across the peninsula in critical weather conditions. Pictured: Nathan Slater (left) and Gage Hardman (right)
Nine young members of the Hoover Volunteer Fire Department, ages 14 to 17, have joined efforts to combat the inferno, as only 15 percent of the fire has been contained nearly a week after it ignited. Monday. Pictured: Gage Hardman, third from left.
Nine youth members were deployed, providing water and supplies to members in the field, putting out fires with hoses, and cooling heated grass. Pictured: Nathan Slater (left) and Gage Hardman (right)
Nathan, who has been training and volunteering for a few months, wasn’t the only teen firefighter who responded to the call.
Braxton Moler, another young volunteer, said, “I said I needed to help my community and I didn’t want my city to burn down.”
Gage Hardman, 15, who also approached the fire, said: “When I first saw the page, I was nervous and at the same time I felt a little bit of adrenaline.”
Together, nine young members deployed, providing water and supplies to members in the field, putting out fires with hoses, and cooling heated grass.
Each of the junior firefighters was paired with an experienced adult, joining the tireless efforts to combat the flames that have forced thousands of people to evacuate.
Gage said he had worked into the early hours of the morning for three days straight to help extinguish the flames.
“Once you get used to it, it’s not scary, it’s more of a ‘get over it, you’ll be fine,'” he said.
The children said they always looked out for each other to make sure everyone was safe during their shifts.
‘If we get out of line…we’ll check on each other, see how we’re doing, give them water, if we have water we’ll just check on them mentally and physically and see how they feel. “said Kade Preston, 17.
‘I feel like it eased some nerves in my system. For me it meant knowing that some of my friends were with me,” Gage added.
The past week brought a mix of joy, fear and pride for the families of young firefighters. Pictured left to right: Christie Slater (Nathan’s mother), Nathan, Gage, Heather Brogan (Gage’s mother)
Gage Hardman, 15, who also approached the fire, said: “When I first saw the page, I was nervous and at the same time I felt a little bit of adrenaline.”
According to the Texas A&M Forest Service, the Smokehouse Creek Fire has burned 1.07 million acres in Texas and 25,000 acres in Oklahoma.
The fire is the size of all of Rhode Island and is larger than the top 20 California wildfires in the past 90 years.
The past week brought a mix of joy, fear and pride for the families of young firefighters.
Gage’s mother, Heather Brogan, shared with DailyMail.com that the children had worked tirelessly from Monday to Wednesday and had not worked since.
However, when the fire in Pampa reignited on Saturday afternoon, they received a call to respond once again.
Brogen said: ‘In my opinion he is a very brave young man and I am very proud of his hard work. He is always prepared and ready to act at any time.
He is surrounded by truly incredible men. So I think it was a good opportunity for him to learn what he wants to do in the future,” he added.
Gage’s mother, Heather Brogan, shared with DailyMail.com that the children had worked tirelessly from Monday to Wednesday and had been apart ever since.
However, when the fire in Pampa reignited on Saturday afternoon, they received a call to respond once again.
According to the Texas A&M Forest Service, the Smokehouse Creek Fire has burned 1.07 million acres in Texas and 25,000 acres in Oklahoma. Pictured: An aerial view of the burned area in Stinnett, Texas, on Friday.
The Texas wildfires have collectively burned more than 1.1 million acres. Aerial view shows Tuesday’s terrifying inferno
Christie Slater, Nathan’s mother, said: “I was shocked by the whole situation. So yeah, it takes a little while to realize what your baby is really doing when he’s out there fighting those fires.”
Tears welled in Slater’s eyes when she dropped her son off at the fire station Monday and when she returned from her shift early Tuesday morning.
Nathan said: “It was getting devastating as it got closer and watching my parents evacuate while I stayed behind and helped them.”
“But I knew they were safe and I would be safe because I had everyone in the fire department around me,” he said.
“When your kids decide they want to join the Army or the Marines, or these days anyway, everything… can have negative results,” Brogen added.
“So stay positive and support your children and let your children show the world that there is still hope and that our youth are not falling by the wayside.”