TEMPLE, Texas — 2020 is the first year Temple Fire and Rescue has become part of the Texas Intrastate Fire Mutual Aid System or, TFMUS.
"The program can take local resources and deploy them at the state level," Temple Fire's Battalion Chief Matthew Perrine said. "For example, we sent three people to Hurricane Laura and we currently have one man in California."
California is currently seeing its biggest wildfire in history. Perrine said as a firefighter you want to do everything you can to help.
"Even though this is an out of state deployment these are American people and fellow firefighters doing it," Perrine said. "It nags you as a firefighter to see things like this happen and know there are programs to help but not be able to go."
Temple Fire has worked to become a part of TIFMAS for the past eight years and now has 18 members actively involved.
"It is a volunteer situation. It isn't anything mandatory the guys that are in it are doing it because they want to," Perrine said.
Captain Dustin McGraw is a chief at Temple Fire and Rescue and has been out in California since Tuesday. He is set to stay there for 21 days.
Other cities in Central Texas that have sent help to the west coast include Round Rock, Georgetown, Killeen and Coppers Cove.
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