Firefighters from several departments responded in sweltering heat on Wednesday of last week to a house fire on Hawthorn Street in Houston.
The City of Houston and Houston Rural departments were activated around 12:15 p.m., and the Cabool Fire Department arrived shortly thereafter. An ambulance was called to be on standby.
At 1:40 p.m., personnel were requested from the Raymondville and Licking fire departments. At 2 p.m., extra personnel from Mountain Grove and Roby were called, but Mountain Grove stayed in its community in the event it was needed to cover for Cabool.
Neighbors were first on the scene and used a garden hose to attempt to douse the fire. When firefighters arrived, several onlookers helped remove items from the front porch.
Two firefighters battling the blaze were taken to Texas County Memorial Hospital with heat exhaustion. The last fire truck left the scene at 9:40 p.m.
The house was at 517 Hawthorn (located between Bryan and Dooley streets) and was owned by Lynn and Mary Gayer. The fire apparently started in a storage unit attached to the house and spread from there. Authorities said the cause isn’t known.