Okay, it's John Erickson, but you know what I mean. A nice little essay and photos on the fire near Erickson's home:

http://www.hankthecowdog.com/books/other/fire.htm

Yow! Must've been painful to participate in, much less write about.

quote:

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It appears that the ordeal is finished. To the south of us lie the death and destruction of the worst fire in Texas history. Estimates say a million acres were burned and 10,000 cattle lost. Eleven people were killed and several firefighters were injured. Hundreds of miles of fence were destroyed. The replacement cost will be $10,000 a mile. We were lucky this time. Our hearts go out to those who were not.

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I was floored at the $10,000 a mile figure. I recently had 5 strand barbed wire put in with metal t-posts every 15 feet. Price, including tearing out the old fence: $4,000 a mile.

I realize rough, rocky terrain can increase the cost, but by 2.5X?

Cedar posts might also raise the cost, but looks like steel would be the way to go.


EDIT: Wanted to add that one firefighter later died of injuries sustained fighting the fires.

Howardwick volunteer fireman James McMorries, Jr.

http://amarillo.com/stories/041006/new_4414436.shtml

quote:

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When it was time to help his community, James McMorries Jr. could never say no.

Even when his family came to visit his home in Howardwick and the largest grass fires in Texas history were growing out of control, McMorries knew he couldn't stay at home.

"He said, 'There is a fire and I got to go and help some people,' and put on his hat and left," said Megan Bowes, 28, McMorries' stepdaughter.

It was the last time his family saw him so full of life...


McMorries, 62, who suffered critical injuries when his firetruck rolled over March 12 near Alanreed died at 11 a.m. Sunday. His family took him off life support at 12:30 p.m. Saturday and took him to a local hospice where he died Sunday.

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[This message has been edited by CanyonAg77 (edited 4/21/2006 9:24a).]

Wow, quite a powerful and somber essay. That fire reminds us, or me at least, that out in the wild country of West Texas, we can't forget that we're still at the mercy of the power of God and nature.

As an aside, I'm quite a fan of John R. Erickson. I grew up reading Hank the Cowdog as a kid, and my younger sisters and I own just about all of the books. I've met John a couple of times, got his signature on a book or two, he's quite a nice and interesting guy.

Thanks for posting that -
Here is another interesting link:

http://www.faculty.english.ttu.edu/carter/pampafire/


[This message has been edited by meatball (edited 4/24/2006 11:03p).]

Ditto:

quote:

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I'm quite a fan of John R. Erickson. I grew up reading Hank the Cowdog as a kid, ... he's quite a nice and interesting guy.

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A couple of years ago I was sitting with his wife, Kris, at a block party in town (between the Methodist and Baptist Churches) and tried to convince her that Hank needed to catch a train to Aggieland and take Miss Reveille out on a few dates to get his mind off Miss Beulah. I guess that never did pan out - probably too many copyright issues, etc. But it was fun to talk to her about it . . . .

meatball,

are you from perryton?

Yes.

Is it true that Perryton is 1/2 Japanese now with the folks running the hog farms?

C77: I'm not sure if you are joking or not . . . .

or, just getting back at me for the 'Canyon = southside armpit of Amarillo' comment I made on another thread (in which I used a )

Maybe a little joking....but hasn't there been some Japanese moving in, or am I thinking of another town in that area?

I thought I was told that some big hog farms owned by Japanese opened up in that area. This caused an influx of Japanese management and Mexican labor.

I've been told that a couple of Japanese restaurants have opened.

I know that there are kids with Japanese names on their HS XC team.

Any truth to the rumors or total BS?

While I don't live there anymore, there is a big difference between:

quote:

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...Perryton is 1/2 Japanese now ...

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and

quote:

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...hasn't there been some Japanese moving in...

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Yes, there is a hog farm there that is owned by a Japanese company - but the only Japanese that moved in are mostly higher level management types (or at least that is the way it was 7 or so years ago) - we are talking about a handful of families.

When the hog farm was announced, it created a big stink in the county (how 'bout that pun!). Not only was there really no history of commercial hog farming in that area - there also wasn't any other races other than white and Mexican. So, basically you had a 'war' between people who wanted change and those who couldn't live with it - literally turned neighbor against neighbor for a while (but, so has cotton farming).

I am sure there are all kinds of myths about the hog operation out there - just don't believe EVERYTHING you hear. Yes, there are 2 Chinese restaurants - but, there has usually been at least one.

The population of Mexicans has grown tremendously (it was probably 40% of population 10 or 15 years ago and now is over 50%) - but, I am sure that can be the result of not only the hog farm but also the oil boom.

Perryton is a booming town right now. Very hard to find a place to live (own or rent). Quite different than many rural towns.

Maybe someone who still lives there can concur with or refute what is written.

hth

[This message has been edited by meatball (edited 5/7/2006 11:26p).]

Hey meatball,

What year did you graduate? When did you move away from Perryton? Any hints on your identity?!

[This message has been edited by p-townag (edited 5/8/2006 11:06p).]

meatballag @ hotmail . com