Late night fire destroys portion of Port Isabel condo complex

Authorities in Port Isabel continue to investigate the cause of a fire at a condominium complex that destroyed two buildings that housed 16 condominium units.

The fire broke out at about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Oyster Cove Condominiums at 401 Island Avenue, said John Sandoval, fire marshal for the City of Port Isabel.

The fire was large enough that mutual aid from the cities of Brownsville, Los Fresnos, South Padre Island and Laguna Vista were called in to assist the Port Isabel Fire Department.

U.S. Coast Guard members stationed at South Padre Island assist in extinguishing a fire Tuesday night, Oct. 18, 2022, at a Port Isabel condo complex. (Courtesy: U.S. Coast Guard)

The U.S. Coast Guard also assisted in battling the blaze.

“It was a very large structure fire, enough for us to call for mutual aid from all those different agencies,” Sandoval said.

About 40 firefighters were at the scene.

“This is probably as bad as it is going to get in most cases,” Sandoval said, commenting on the size of the fire. “It was a perfect storm, unfortunately, for a fire of this type. Wind was coming out of the north, very strong winds and then the type of structure didn’t help either.”

Sandoval said the buildings were made from wood and had block walls on the outside.

“A lot of fuel load… for our firefighters and the other departments to contain it to two buildings only was nothing short of a miracle,” he said.

Authorities had to evacuate people living in the surrounding units plus the Sand Piper RV Park, which was located next to Oyster Cove, because it is located downwind from the fire.

U.S. Coast Guard members stationed at South Padre Island assist in extinguishing a fire Tuesday night, Oct. 18, 2022, at a Port Isabel condo complex. (Courtesy: U.S. Coast Guard)

The city’s event and cultural center was temporarily opened as a warming center for those people who were evacuated.

Everyone was allowed to return to their homes at about 3 a.m.

Several members of the Port Isabel city council also went out to make sure the firefighters remained hydrated and were taken care of.

Sandoval said one of the biggest hurdles authorities faced was determining how many people were inside of the condominiums, since many of the units did not have full-time residents.

“We were able to quickly account for the full-time residents that were there. However, we also needed to ensure that we didn’t have anyone vacationing in the other units or didn’t have anybody staying there that might have been rented there as an Air BNB… that was our biggest hurdle,” he said.

The Port Isabel Volunteer Fire Department continues to spray down the fire-damaged buildings with water Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2022, after a fire broke out the evening prior, destroying two buildings at Oyster Cove Condominiums in Port Isabel. (Denise Cathey/The Brownsville Herald)

Sandoval said that as of Wednesday morning, everyone had been accounted for.

“It’s just a blessing that there were no injuries, and there were no fatalities in a fire this large,” he said.

Although the fire was contained or under control at about 1:30 a.m. Wednesday, firefighters remained at the scene Wednesday afternoon continuing to put out hot spots.

Sandoval said because of the amount of fuel load that was still was in the area, and the smoldering and the potential for a re-ignition, he called for a fire watch on the complex for the next 48 hours but could be extended if needed.

“That pretty much means we will have a fire unit and engine company at the location for the next 48 hours until we are absolutely sure there will not be a re-ignition, just to ensure the rest of the buildings are safe,” he said.

A fire hose snakes through a gap in the fence Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2022, as the Port Isabel Volunteer Fire Department continues to put out a fire from the previous evening at Oyster Cove Condominiums in Port Isabel. (Denise Cathey/The Brownsville Herald)

The South Padre Island and Port Isabel police departments also had patrol units patrolling the area around the Port Isabel Fingers and an additional two blocks to make sure there were no secondary fires.

“We did have one secondary fire break out two streets down in a palm tree that had to be taken care of,” Sandoval said. The palm tree caught fire from flying embers from the condominium fire, he said.

Coast Guard Station South Padre Island watchstanders received a call from Port Isabel Fire Department personnel at about 11:20 p.m. Tuesday requesting assistance fighting a fire at Oyster Cove Condominiums in the Port Isabel Fingers, the federal agency stated in a media release.

“Although we typically train to respond to fires on board boats, we’re glad we could apply our expertise and equipment to aid in putting out the condo fire this morning,” said Lt. Shane Gunderson, commanding officer, Station South Padre Island. “We will continue to work alongside our invaluable agency partners to protect and assist members of our surrounding communities.”

The smoking remains of two fire-damaged buildings are visible Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2022, after a fire broke out the evening prior at Oyster Cove Condominiums in Port Isabel. (Denise Cathey/The Brownsville Herald)

The SPC–SW crew arrived on scene at 12:55 a.m. and positioned the boat near the condo buildings, two of which had collapsed, Coast Guard authorities said.

Using the P-6 pumps, firefighters and Station South Padre Island boat crew members worked to extinguish flames in the condo buildings and on surrounding piers.

Sandoval said authorities won’t be able to determine what caused the fire until they can go in and investigate the area, which will be done once all the hot spots have been extinguished.