Dateline: March 23, 2006

Two injured firemen remain hospitalized

By Roger Estlack, Clarendon Enterprise

One injured Howardwick fireman has come home, and two others remain hospitalized this week as their community continues to hope for their full recoveries.

All three men were injured March 12 when their fire truck overturned while battling the I-40 fire that burned 350,000 acres in an area 20 miles wide and 55 miles long in Donley, Gray, Wheeler, and Collingsworth counties over a period of several days.

Mayor Pro-tem Marvin Elam says 25-year-old Joey Garcia is at home recuperating from surgery to fix a leg that was broken in two places and from burns to his hands.

Jeff Cook, 45, remains in Northwest Texas Hospital with a broken neck and other injuries. Elam said Cook is doing well and is walking around visiting with other patients. He was scheduled to be released Monday, but Elam said as of Tuesday morning doctors were wanting to perform another surgery on his neck.

The third Howardwick fireman, 62-year-old James McMorries, remains on life support in Northwest Texas Hospital in very critical condition. Among other injuries, sources tell the Enterprise that McMorries has a broken back and suffered two strokes over the weekend. But there was some good news.

“James came around yesterday [Monday],” Elam said. “He opened his eyes and reacted to lights and visitors.”

As of Tuesday morning, McMorries had not opened his eyes again, Elam said, and doctors were planning to reposition his breathing tube and insert a feeding tube to make him more comfortable.

Elam said he hopes to have good news to report on McMorries soon.

“Everyone just keep James in your prayers,” he said. “He’s a good guy with a good family. He’s done a lot for the department and has gotten tires and equipment for us.”

Howardwick’s municipal insurance will cover the firemen’s medical expenses, but the families of the injured men must cope with living expenses since the volunteer firemen will be missing weeks if not months of work.

“They’re all missing work,” Elam said. “The young man [Garcia] is probably hurting the most. He and his wife are expecting a baby this summer.”

Donations can be made to a fund for the individual firemen at Amarillo National Bank. Local donations are being accepted at the Donley County State Bank.

“We’ve had a lot of response from here, and we’ve had donations from people with no connection to the local community,” Elam said. “One lady from out of state was there when the accident happened, and she has sent some money.”

Elam also said he’s proud of his community for the way its come together to support a revitalized fire department. When the New Year’s Day fire burned more than 21,000 acres in northern Donley County, the Howardwick department had only six or seven members. But Elam said that had grown to 30 members by the time of the I-40 fire, and more applications have been received since then.

“We’ve got a lot of new members, people who see the need,” Elam said. “I’m proud of them and the way they are working together. We want to model ourselves on Clarendon’s department, and we train with them.”

In addition to the human injuries, the department also suffered the loss of one of its grassfire trucks during the accident. Donations are also coming in to replace that truck, and a fund has been established at the Community Bank in Clarendon for that purpose.