Tag Archives: fire

The ITC fire five years later

Posted on March 25, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

We learned some things from this. The Intercontinental Terminals Co. fire that broke out March 17, 2019, did not just lead to a massive black plume of smoke lingering for days over east Harris County, before spreading 20 miles to … Continue reading →

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The Panhandle wildfires

Posted on March 2, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Scary stuff. A blanket of snow and rain that descended over the Texas Panhandle on Thursday helped firefighters to quell the spread of the largest wildfire in the state’s history, which has engulfed more than 1 million acres of land … Continue reading →

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On the weather and the climate

Posted on January 23, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Good news: The dormant wildfire season — which has produced nearly all of the 30 largest wildfires in Texas — is here, but data from the Texas A&M Forest Service suggest this may be a mild year thanks to El … Continue reading →

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Wildfire disaster declared

Posted on August 16, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Stay safe, y’all. Gov. Greg Abbott has issued a wildfire disaster declaration for about 75% of Texas counties, allowing them to use all available state resources to respond to any new fires as the state continues to bake under triple-digit … Continue reading →

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Watson Grinding explosion “could have been prevented”

Posted on July 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know about you, but I favor there being fewer unplanned massive explosions. A deadly explosion that rocked northwest Houston in January 2020 could have been prevented with better planning and safety training, the federal agency responsible for investigating chemical … Continue reading →

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City donates to Winter Street relief

Posted on February 20, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good to see. Nearly two months after dozens of artists saw their work and gallery spaces burnt away, the city of Houston offered a step toward recovery. Mayor Sylvester Turner on Thursday announced that the city would donate $250,000 toward … Continue reading →

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More on the Winter Street Studios fire

Posted on January 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron profiles two artists that were affected by the recent fire at the Winter Street Studios. At Winter Street Studios, red caution tape draped an X pattern over an entrance to the building, a workspace for Houston area artists. … Continue reading →

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The Winter Street Studios fire

Posted on December 24, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This is so awful. A fire that broke out Tuesday morning at Winter Street Studios has damaged countless works of art and left many Houston artists without workspaces or gallery space. The fire, which began around 6:30 a.m., is being investigated as arson, … Continue reading →

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Harris County implements a burn ban

Posted on July 1, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Surely this is a thing we can all comply with. Harris County Commissioners Court on Tuesday enacted a countywide burn ban due to drought conditions and an increased threat of wildfires across unincorporated Harris County, but fireworks will remain legal … Continue reading →

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In case you hadn’t noticed, we’re in a drought

Posted on June 27, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

And by “we”, I mean most of the state. About 80% of Texas is currently experiencing some level of drought conditions, ranging from “moderate” to “exceptional.” The drought, which caused wildfires across the state earlier this year and prompted burn bans, is now … Continue reading →

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Ten years after the Bastrop fire

Posted on November 14, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

The headline on this story asks whether Texas is ready for the next big fire. I think we know the answer to that. Ten years ago, Texas experienced it’s worst wildfire disaster in the state’s history. Over 31 thousand fires … Continue reading →

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What can Houston do about hazardous buildings?

Posted on February 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a good question, but there’s another question that has to be considered alongside it. For the first time, Houston City Council members publicly floated proposals Wednesday for how the city can better protect its residents from explosions like the … Continue reading →

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How many explosions is too many explosions?

Posted on January 26, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Unfortunately, we’re on track to find out. It’s a scene that’s all too familiar to Houston residents. Explosions, flames reaching into the sky, plumes of black smoke, calls to shelter in place, evacuations, injuries and deaths. The explosion early Friday … Continue reading →

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The state of the county 2019

Posted on November 18, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo has a lot of accomplishments to tout. Harris County in the past year has made significant progress on flood control, criminal justice and improving public health, County Judge Lina Hidalgo said in her first State … Continue reading →

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Commissioners Court gets more aggressive on environmental enforcement

Posted on September 16, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Commissioners Court on Tuesday voted to hire 61 employees across three departments in a bid to significantly boost Harris County’s ability to respond to environmental emergencies after finding numerous shortcomings in its efforts to manage three chemical fires near … Continue reading →

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Study shows a lot of gaps in Harris County’s ability to respond to chemical fires

Posted on August 5, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This quantifies what was painfully apparent in recent months. More monitoring and manpower is needed for Harris County to better respond to chemical fires like the three that struck the region earlier this year, worrying residents and shutting the Houston … Continue reading →

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Another view of pollution enforcement

Posted on May 4, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

The state has its role, but it’s not all on them. Almost two months before a massive chemical fire erupted in Deer Park, sending a dark plume of smoke over much of Harris County, Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia asked … Continue reading →

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County brings charges related to ITC fire

Posted on May 2, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Bring it on. Responding to what it called “criminal levels” of contamination, the Harris County District Attorney’s office said Monday that it has charged Intercontinental Terminals Company with five misdemeanor counts of water pollution arising from a March plant fire … Continue reading →

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Explode, rinse, repeat

Posted on April 4, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go again. A massive explosion at a chemical plant in northeast Harris County on Tuesday killed one person and sent two others to the hospital in critical condition, sparking a blaze that sent yet another plume of dark … Continue reading →

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Harris County sues ITC over Deer Park fire

Posted on March 27, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Go get ’em. Harris County has sued Intercontinental Terminals Co. for failing to prevent a massive chemical fire that burned for more than 60 hours last week and spewed an unknown volume of hazardous chemicals into the air and nearby … Continue reading →

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State sues over Deer Park fire

Posted on March 23, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Too big to ignore. Late Friday, the state of Texas sued Intercontinental Terminals — the Houston-based company whose petrochemical storage facility in the suburb of Deer Park caught fire last weekend and burned for days, sending a dramatic plume of … Continue reading →

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LBJ Wildflower Center helping to restore pine trees to Texas

Posted on February 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Very cool. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center of The University of Texas at Austin has been selected by the Texas A&M Forest Service (TFS) to serve as the local grower of loblolly pines to restore wildfire-damaged Bastrop County. The … Continue reading →

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Save those seeds

Posted on December 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

What would have been worse than the drought and the wildfires in Central Texas that wiped out millions of trees? Not having the wherewithal to properly reforest afterward. Thankfully, that didn’t happen, but it was a closer call than you’d … Continue reading →

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A dollar a tree

Posted on September 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Replacing the trees lost in the Bastrop fires last summer is going to cost some money, but there’s now a foundation working on raising that money. Flanked by containers bristling with pine tree seedlings, state and local officials on Tuesday … Continue reading →

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Assessing the risk of wildfires

Posted on May 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

While one hopes that it won’t be a problem this year, the Harris County Fire Marshall has come up with a plan to protect vulnerable areas from wildfires. Four months ago, Harris County became the most populated county in the … Continue reading →

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The science of fire

Posted on November 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Great story about how scientists have been figuring out what really happens when a building burns, and why so much arson “evidence” is bunk: At laboratories throughout the United States—some large enough to contain a three-story house—researchers have been lighting … Continue reading →

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Assessing the wildfire damage

Posted on October 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This will be grim work. A multiagency environmental response task force will soon issue a report assessing the environmental and ecological damage of the wildfires. “It’s almost complete,” said Roxanne Hernandez, administrator for the county’s Lost Pines Habitat Conservation Plan … Continue reading →

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Trouble with the trees

Posted on September 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The drought gets more expensive for the city of Houston. The drought is about to claim yet more of Houston’s green – this time $4.5 million in tax dollars to remove trees that have died of thirst. Houston’s driest year … Continue reading →

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More things that schools have to deal with that isn’t in their budgets

Posted on September 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Droughts and wildfires. The drought across Texas has lasted nearly 12 months, and it doesn’t seem to be going away any time soon. In fact, La Niña, the intermittent Pacific Ocean phenomenon that caused the drought, is back and strengthening. … Continue reading →

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What we lost in the wildfires

Posted on September 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It’s going to take a long time to recover from the fires. The fire burned through the heart of the Lost Pines area, a unique ecological island encompassing some 64,000 acres of loblolly pine, the westernmost stands of the great … Continue reading →

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Mayor extends burn ban in parks

Posted on September 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Mayor Parker Extends Parks Burn Ban to Include Smoking Mayor Annise Parker today signed an executive order extending the City’s temporary burn ban to include smoking in City parks.  The smoking ban applies to lighted cigars, cigarettes, … Continue reading →

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We had a wildfire protection plan

Posted on September 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

We just weren’t willing to pay for it. Long before this month’s historic wildfires in Texas, the state’s forest service came up with a $20.4 million plan to stop the flames from starting or tamp them out before small blazes … Continue reading →

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City may ban smoking in parks

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Um, yeah. Mayor Annise Parker said she is considering banning smoking in the city’s 380 parks because of the fire dangers presented by discarded cigarettes. “This drought is a crisis situation,” Parker said.  ”I am leaning toward a ban on smoking cigarettes, … Continue reading →

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New park protection rules

Posted on September 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the Mayor’s office: People Protecting Our Parks Mayor Annise Parker Announces New Fire Safety Campaign for City Parks Mayor Annise Parker, the Houston Parks and Recreation Department (HPARD) and the Houston Fire Department (HFD) announced People Protecting Our Parks, a new … Continue reading →

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