KAUFMAN COUNTY, Texas — Authorities of Kaufman County are searching for a driver who was pulling a burning trailer that ignited three separate fires, which also threatened homes, officials said Sunday.
County officials said in a news release that the fires broke out around 12 p.m. Sunday along county roads 151 and 151A near the city of Kaufman.
The fires led to the evacuation of 12 homes. Two sheds were destroyed, as well as part of a mobile home, but no one was injured.
“A sheriff was frantically knocking on my door and said, 'Get out, get out. There’s fire all around you,'" said Michele Todd, whose home was surrounded by flames.
Todd was preparing to leave but decided to stay when her pets dove under her home. She began to use a hose around the home to keep the ground wet until a stranger arrived.
“This guy comes running up to me. He had a huge fire extinguisher. This guy saved our house," she said. “It was surrounding us. Propane tank is right over there. I mean it would’ve been over for us."
Officials said firefighters from the city of Kaufman and volunteer crews from Crandall, Kemp, Scurry, Terrell, Mabank and College Mound responded to the scene. The Texas A&M Forest Service also helped.
By 6 p.m. Sunday, the fires were out. The evacuation orders were lifted at around 3 p.m., officials said.
According to the county, witnesses told authorities a driver was pulling a burning trailer along the roads and "left a path of destruction" before abandoning the trailer. In total, around seven acres were burned, according to Kaufman Fire Chief Ronnie Davis.
“It’s just crazy," Davis said. “That much fire driving down the road. Why they didn’t just stop and be on the road right there?”
“I don’t understand how someone can be driving with a trailer on fire like that and not know," Todd said.
Officials said the suspect unhitched the trailer on a bridge and continued to drive away. Details on the suspect's vehicle are not yet available.
Smaller fires started along the road spanning roughly a mile.
“The thing was to get more resources in and hit it fast and hard," Davis said. “It could’ve been very bad.”
Anyone who has information on the incident is asked to call the Kaufman County fire marshal at 469-376-4110.