Search for missing fire chief renews; Phillips honored in Kerrville
Michael Phillips is one of the few victims that is still missing from the July flooding that devastated Central Texas. Law enforcement will soon renew their search for the former Marble Falls volunteer fire chief. File photo
Law enforcement will soon renew the search for missing Marble Falls Area Fire Chief Michael Phillips, who was swept away on July 5 when responding to a distress call amid devastating flooding in Central Texas. The chief was also recently honored in Kerrville alongside other victims of the flood.
According to Burnet County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Alan Trevino, a multi-agency effort to continue the search for Phillips is underway, and it should begin within the first quarter of 2026.
“(Phillips’) family has been notified (of the impending search),” Trevino told DailyTrib. “We have a team coming in that will be assisted by the Sheriff’s Office and other local entities. It’s going to be a full blown search again. We will use everything at our disposal.”
Trevino explained that recent developments in technology may help with the renewed effort. He also said that analysis of past data, drones, watercraft, cadaver dogs, and more personnel would be brought to bear in the search.
Phillips is one of the few victims of the flood that is still technically missing. Including the chief, five people were killed during the disaster in Burnet County. At least 137 people were killed in total during the flooding according to a July 31 Texas House and Senate Committees on Disaster Preparedness and Flooding report. The vast majority of the victims were in Kerr County, with 119 dead.
Phillips, and other flood victims, were honored with crosses during a special ceremony held on Dec. 13 at The Coming King Sculpture Prayer Gardens in Kerrville. The missing chief’s cross was accepted by two representatives from the Marble Falls Area VFD– new Fire Chief Derrick Curtis and Assistant Chief Thomas Jacobs.
“Seeing (the Kerrville) community reach out and say they want to honor the folks in Burnet County, it was a very sobering moment,” Curtis told DailyTrib.
The chief went missing in the dark early morning hours of July 5 when he and his vehicle were swept away by the raging waters of Cow Creek during an attempt to cross the typically shallow stream on his way to a distress call. His vehicle was recovered, but, despite weeks of extensive searching, his body was never found.