Austin, TX
Austin, Texas firefighters denounce refusal to deploy department’s rescue teams to areas impacted by historic flash floods
Austin firefighters wishing to make contact with the WSWS can submit the form below. All submissions will be kept anonymous.
The deadly flooding in Texas Hill Country has exposed deep cracks in American society. At least 120 people have died and 170 remain missing in a catastrophe that could have been mitigated with timely warnings and coordinated rescue operations. But years of budget cuts, disinvestment in public infrastructure and politically driven decision-making have taken their toll.
The region lacked any flood warning system. Staffing shortages at the National Weather Service hampered the agency’s ability to issue timely alerts. And in one of the most damning failures, the City of Austin Fire Department—despite having “the best water rescue units in the state,” according to Austin Firefighters Association (AFA) President Bob Nicks—refused to deploy rescue teams until after the flooding had already begun.
On July 11, the AFA (Local 975 of the International Association of Firefighters) voted overwhelmingly—by 93 percent—to issue a resolution of no confidence in Fire Chief Joel Baker.
In a statement, the AFA wrote:
The Austin Firefighters Association is demanding a full investigation into the decision and calling for transparency and accountability at all levels of management.
We’re urging investigative journalists and the public to help uncover the truth. The lives of citizens—and trust in our local government—depend on it.
The firefighters will not stop until every responsible party is held accountable and systemic changes are made to prevent such a tragedy from happening again.
According to Nicks, two formal requests for assistance were sent to the Austin Fire Department before the flooding began. Both were denied. A month earlier, Chief Baker had imposed a moratorium on all out-of-area deployments, citing internal “cash flow problems.”
But Nicks dismissed the financial excuse as a “non-starter,” noting that any deployment costs would be reimbursed by the state of Texas. “The message up and down the chain of command was: do not deploy and do not even ask,” he told the World Socialist Web Site. It was not until July 4—after the disaster was well underway—that Baker allowed just three rescue divers to be sent to the region.
Firefighters from every other major Texas city, as well as from Oklahoma City and even from Mexico, deployed to assist.
Retired Austin rescue captain Matt Rush rejected the excuse that sending help would have left the city unprotected. “If we send resources to a flood event, we are not losing capability within the city of Austin,” he told austinpolitics.net. “We’re not closing 10 fire stations in Austin to go help Kerrville.”
Right-wing provocateurs have seized on the controversy to advance a racist narrative (Joel Baker is African-American). Charlie Kirk, the fascistic founder of Turning Point USA, said on his podcast: “How many people unnecessarily died because of DEI?” This vile attempt to use this tragedy to incite racism is aimed at shielding the real criminals—Texas Governor Greg Abbott and the Republican-controlled state legislature, which has refused to fund a flood warning system but has spent more than $11 billion since 2021 on Operation Lone Star, the state’s anti-immigrant border crackdown.
At the same time, Democratic Party officials in Austin have denounced the firefighters’ vote of no confidence. Democratic Mayor Kirk Watson accused Nicks of “politicizing” the disaster during union negotiations. City Manager T.C. Broadnax echoed the charge, calling the AFA’s resolution “disappointing.” Others affiliated with the Democratic Party have even insinuated that the union’s criticisms were racially motivated, forcing the AFA to issue a statement clarifying that the dispute “is not about race or ethnicity.”
Nicks, who emphasized that “I am not a MAGA guy,” told the WSWS that neither race nor partisanship motivated the union’s decision but the imperative to protect lives and hold those responsible to account.
Indeed, what the Kerr floods exposed is the deep class fault lines in the United States. The flood occurred amid record cuts to public spending, including to the National Weather Service and other basic services millions rely on before and during extreme weather events. As has been widely reported, Trump’s first administration rejected a funding application from the county government for a flood warning system.
Meanwhile, Democratic Party politicians are carrying out massive cuts to city services in major cities, such as Los Angeles, Chicago and Philadelphia. Watson’s arrogant denunciation of the firefighters’ principled stand confirms the local government’s complicity in the decision not to send highly trained personnel to save lives.
This draining of social resources at every level must be countered by a movement in the working class, independent of both parties, fighting against the Wall Street oligarchy, which is the recipient of these resources.
Austin had a particularly itchy and drippy cedar fever season to start the year. Many winter days, from late December into February, had high or very high ashe juniper (aka cedar) pollen counts.
Central Texas has a year-round allergy season with mold popping up at any time. For the more traditional spring and fall allergy seasons, forecasters at AccuWeather are predicting some of the allergens across the country will be worse this year than average.
Texas, though, is a different story.
For grass allergies, which happen now through September, AccuWeather estimates Austin will have an average season. However, just west of the Interstate 35 corridor in the Hill Country to almost El Paso, that season is expected to be worse than normal.
“Texas may experience above-average grass pollen for a few weeks,” AccuWeather’s allergy report said, “though the season could be shorter-lived compared to northern areas.”
It all depends on the weather
How much rain we get in the next six months and the perennial Texas heat will all affect the growing season for grasses and weeds, as well as the amount of pollen trees produce. The Farmers’ Almanac and the Old Farmers Almanac are both predicting a wetter and warmer spring.
Rain helps plants grow, which can increase pollen production over time. However, rainfall during allergy season can also bring temporary relief by washing pollen out of the air. That’s what we’re expecting this weekend, with our first meaningful rain chance in nearly three weeks. Tree and weed pollen levels might briefly drop, but mold could spike because it thrives in damp, humid weather.
If spring continues with excessive heat like we saw in February, it could limit the growth of some plants and trees. Extreme heat can reduce how much they grow, and how much pollen they produce. On the other hand, if we get a healthy balance of rain and only slightly above-normal temperatures — not extreme heat — pollen counts could climb. That’s especially true as we head into April, typically our windiest month of the year, which helps spread pollen more easily.
How can you treat allergies in Austin?
If you are feeling the effects of allergies, here are some things you can do to lessen them:
- Start taking allergy medication at least two weeks before your allergen’s season is supposed to start. Keep taking your allergy medication throughout your allergen’s season, even on low-pollen days.
- Vary your allergy medication. You can take a nasal spray, an eye drop and an oral antihistamine at the same time to treat the different symptoms. If one kind of allergy medication isn’t working, consult your doctor about whether you should add a second one or switch out the medication.
- Take a shower before going to bed.
- Take off outside clothes or shoes when you get into the house.
- Do a daily nasal wash such as a neti pot or saline spray.
- Consider seeing an allergist to get drops or shots to lessen your reaction to the allergen.
Consider these household tips to improve your chances of keeping allergens away:
- Change the filters in your house regularly during cedar fever season.
- Vacuum and sweep regularly.
- Change your sheets, especially your pillow regularly.
- Keep doors and windows closed.
- Clean out the vents in your home.
- Have your home tested for indoor allergens such as mold.
- Wash and brush the animals in your house to lessen the amount of allergens in the air.
- Wear a mask outside or inside while you are trying to lessen the pollen or mold indoors.
Democrats tried to stop a mid-decade redistricting effort, but were unsuccessful. Now, we are starting to see some of the candidates emerging in those newly drawn districts. FOX 7 Austin’s Rudy Koski gives a full breakdown.
ROCHESTER, Minn. (KTTC) – A shooting on West Sixth Street in Austin, Texas, early Sunday morning, killed three people and injured more than a dozen others, according to the Austin Police Department. APD confirmed one of the victims was 30-year-old Jorge Pederson, a Minnesota man who worked as an MMA fighter for the Med City Fighting Championships.
“You meet tons of fighters and there are people that stand above the rest that you find you enjoy or find the most amusing,” MCFC Co-Owner Matthew Vogt said. “He was definitely one of them.”
According to Vogt, Pederson was also the owner of a Minnesota business called Metro Movers. Vogt said the MMA competitor touched everyone’s hearts since his first day of fighting professionally in Rochester.
“As soon as we met him when it was the weighing time, we just loved the guy already because he had a great mission or spirit about him,” Vogt said. “He was a funny guy and great fighter.”
Vogt told KTTC when he first saw the news that Pederson was killed, he could not believe what he saw.
“I was looking, like, ‘Wait a minute. Is this one of his shenanigans or did something actually happen there?’” Vogt said, recalling the moment he saw a social media post regarding the shooting in Austin. “I confirmed with a few people and I’m just like, sometimes, some things happen that you don’t even like, you don’t even know how to respond to it because it’s just so out of left field that you don’t immediately have a response to it.”
MCFC confirmed there is an online fundraiser dedicated to supporting Pederson’s family. As of Tuesday afternoon, more than $10,000 has been raised.
“He was someone that always could make anybody laugh,” Vogt said. “Support his family through the fundraiser and take a look at his Instagram especially to see how funny he was.”
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