AUSTIN (KXAN) — As Austin firefighters arrived on scene of large fire at a pawn shop in north Austin overnight Wednesday into Thursday, crews said they ran into issues finding working fire hydrants in the area.
KXAN observed as firefighters ran a line of hose out of the parking lot and down the street to get water to their scene — they ran that line past several fire hydrants that appeared to be out of service.
Austin Firefighters Association President Bob Nicks told KXAN it’s something firefighters train for, but it’s not common.
The Austin Fire Department posted on X shortly after 2 a.m. that firefighters were on the scene of a structure fire at 805 E. Rundberg Lane with “heavy fire inside.” That is the address of Action Pawn.
Wayne Parrish, a division chief with the Austin Fire Department, told KXAN on scene that AFD called in additional units to look for working fire hydrants while they fought the fire.
“My guess is because of road construction happening there were many fire hydrants that were out of service. We only have one hydrant that’s been operational,” Parrish said. “We called in two more additional engine companies and with the assistance from our dispatch center, they were locating hydrants on a map. And we sent those engines to those hydrants to see if they’re working…so those engines are working to lay lines from that hydrant to our scene.”
There is construction being done on Interstate 35 in that area by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), but TxDOT said it was not responsible for the water issues.
“The TxDOT contractor and Austin Water have confirmed there were no waterline interruptions or impacts to hydrants related to the I-35 Capital Express North project,” a spokesperson for TxDOT said.
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Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (KXAN photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (KXAN photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (KXAN photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (KXAN photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (KXAN photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (Austin Fire Department photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (Austin Fire Department photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (Austin Fire Department photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (Austin Fire Department photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (Austin Fire Department photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (Austin Fire Department photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (Austin Fire Department photo) -
Action Pawn at 805 E. Rundberg went up in flames in the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 (KXAN photo)
KXAN reached out to several city of Austin departments, including the AFD and Austin Water. As of around 5 p.m. Thursday, Austin Water said it was still tracking down information.
We will continue to update this story as we learn more.
AFD said the cause of the fire is still under investigation. Nobody was hurt.
