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Charred brick and a few ruble of ash is all that remains of the Linn/San Manuel Fire Department.

On December 10th, while many of the volunteer firefighters were at a Christmas party, their station went up in flames….nothing was sparred.

“Everything that we worked for in the past 20 or 30 years, since the department has been here, is gone,” Chief Mingo Hinojosa started. “We received many grants and equipment and to see it all gone---it is just heartbreaking to see that.”

New fire suits, a truck, hoses, radios, and helmet, just to name a few, were all destroyed.

Chief Hinojosa said he cannot even begin to put a dollar amount on all of the items destroyed on that fateful Saturday night.

 “The fire truck is probably worth about 100-tousand dollars…that doesn’t even touch all of the equipment it carried,” Hinojosa explained. “The rescue tools can run about 70,000 plus. It is just devastating to see all of that equipment gone.”

Despite this blow to the department Hinojosa said they still have a duty to the community.

 “We continue to respond to calls---we started the day after the fire—there has never been an interruption in service,” Hinojosa said.

There is bright light at the end of this tunnel.

A week before the fire broke out Action 4 News told you about the department’s plans to build a new fire station just off of Highway 281. 

Chief Hinojosa told Action 4 News the plans are not final—but they will start construction sooner than expected.

The Hidalgo County Fire Marshal has ruled the fire as undetermined. Investigators told Action 4 News there is not enough evidence to conclude what actually caused the blaze.