Texarkana Arkansas Fire Department

05/18/2020

TAFD would like to congratulate Firefighter Clark Hicks on completing his probationary period. Clark's badge was pinned by his wonderful wife Lindsay.

05/12/2020

Director Odom cared deeply for and always supported the employees of the City of Texarkana, AR. He was a great man that will be missed.

It is with great sadness to announce Travis Odom, former Ward 4 Director, passed away yesterday. He was elected in 2014 and re-elected in 2018 to the Board of Directors and resigned his position in January 2020. Director Odom has served this City well with his dedicated service, devotion, and commitment to the citizens of Texarkana, Arkansas.
Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.

05/06/2020

TAFD would like to thank the Oaklawn Rotary Club, and especially Mrs. Ina McDowell, for providing lunch to the crew on May 5th. You can't beat fajitas from Zapata's on Cinco De Mayo day. The Oaklawn Rotary Club is a fine example of a volunteer organization that does countless things to make Texarkana a great place to live.

05/06/2020

Hand sanitizer has been a priority for TAFD over the last couple of months. We would like to thank Texarkana Hose and Gasket for donating a 5 gallon jug to keep us stocked. Texarkana Hose and Gasket is a great company to do business with. They are located at 1320 Old Post Rd..

05/04/2020

Texarkana Arkansas

Texarkana Arkansas

ATTENTION CITIZENS

Yard waste service and recycling will resume on Wednesday May 13, 2020.

Office of the City Manager

05/01/2020

Our prayers go out to Captain Joe Bunting's family and the Texarkana, TX Police Department.

It's with a broken heart that we share the passing of Texarkana Texas Police Captain Joe Bunting, who died unexpectedly at his home after work last night.

Joe served law enforcement for over 40 years - including 35 years of exemplary service with our department. He held the rank of captain for the last 19 years of his career. He had previously worked for the Stephen F. Austin University and Nacogdoches Texas Police Departments. He was also a Marine Corps veteran.

During his devoted service to this department, Joe served as a Field Training Officer, Patrol Sergeant, Patrol Lieutenant, Office of Professional Responsibility, City Marshal, Uniform Services Commander, Investigative Services Commander, and Interim Chief of Police.

He is survived by his wife, Dr. Alice Bunting, and three sons, Joey, Sam, and John - as well as his brothers and sisters at the Texarkana Texas Police Department.

Please keep Joe’s family in your thoughts and prayers during this most unexpected loss.

Rest in Peace, Captain Bunting…

05/01/2020

Beech Street First Baptist Church

Please keep our department Chaplain, Craig Jenkins, in your prayers. Brother Craig is an invaluable member of our department and we look forward to his recovery and return.

Please share this video on your Facebook feed.

04/29/2020

Taking the Fifth

The Coronavirus pandemic has limited some of our multi-company training but individual companies are still working to keep their skills sharp.

Texarkana, Arkansas, firefighters train Tuesday morning, entering and exiting a fifth-floor window of a property in downtown Texarkana that is being restored into apartments.

04/23/2020

Miller County Office of Emergency Management

Miller County Emergency Operations Center Update 04/23/20

04/08/2020

Miller County Office of Emergency Management

Miller County Emergency Operation Center update 04/07/2020

04/08/2020

TAFD would like to thank Mayo Manufacturing for providing our firefighters with washable, reusable masks. Mayo is a fine example of the many great companies in the Texarkana area.

03/26/2020

Texarkana Arkansas Police Department

It is with the heaviest of hearts that TAPD announces the passing of Detective Holly Smith, after a year long battle with cancer. She died today, March 25, 2020, with her loving husband, Corporal Billy Smith, and her beautiful family at her side. Our collective hearts all mourn her passing and look forward to the day we will be reunited with her beautiful smile. While the world is diminished with her passing, it is undoubtedly a better place for having known her. Holly, we love you and will miss you deeply.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

03/23/2020

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

TAFD would like to assure the citizens of Texarkana, AR that we will still be responding to all requests for assistance during this crisis. We have made some changes to our protocols but these will be mostly transparent to our citizens.

TAFD would also like to recommend that you obtain your news on the COVID-19 virus from reliable sources. The rumor mill is misleading at best and dangerous at worst. We recommend the following sites:

Local Emergency Operations Center- http://coronatxk.org/672/Coronavirus-Disease-2019

AR Department of Health- https://www.healthy.arkansas.gov/programs-services/topics/novel-coronavirus

Centers for Disease Control- https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a virus (more specifically, a coronavirus) identified as the cause of an outbreak of respiratory illness first detected in Wuhan, China.

03/20/2020

Texarkana Arkansas Parks

In an effort to reach more citizens, we are doing a donation drive for supplies for our senior citizens. All donations will go to senior citizens living in the city limits of Texarkana, AR. In return, we will be giving away free hot dog lunches.

Monday March 23
11:00am -1:00pm

We will be set up in the alley behind City Hall at 216 Walnut Texarkana AR. Drive through, drop off, and pick up a lunch!

Items needed:
Canned goods
shelf stable items (rice, dry beans, crackers, peanut butter)
bread
cleaning supplies
hand sanitizer
soap
bottled water
coffee/creamer

All donations are tax deductable and the city will provide a letter.

03/19/2020

Texarkana Arkansas

Texarkana Arkansas

To the Citizens of Texarkana, Arkansas

In and effort to see all of our citizens through this crisis Dollar General will reserve store hours for at-risk shoppers such as senior citizens, pregnant women, and those with compromised immune systems.

They are asking for customers to honor the reserved hours of 8-9 a.m. each day, until further notice. This will allow our senior population to also acquire needed necessities as we continue to navigate through these troubling times.

They want to thank the community in advance for their compassion and understanding toward their neighbors and for helping them maintain these temporary operation guidelines.

Office of the City Manager

03/17/2020

Texarkana Arkansas

Texarkana Arkansas

PSA from the office of the City Manager - The boil ban on water has been lifted for all Texarkana, Arkansas residents.

03/11/2020

TAFD Battalion Chief Rick Pavick recently deployed as Team Leader of the AR-1 Disaster Medical Assistance Team. The team will be providing care to patients exposed to the Novel Coronavirus. We are proud to have one of our personnel leading this team. Please pray for the health and safety of Rick and his entire team.

02/27/2020

TAFD would like to congratulate Heath Beck for his promotion to Captain, Marc Gilliam for his promotion to Engineer, and Dillon Foreback for completing his probationary period.

02/21/2020

Battalion Chief Jeff Tanner recently attended the "Command and Control Decision-Making at Multiple Alarm Incidents" course at the National Fire Academy. TAFD personnel train constantly to better serve and protect the citizen's of Texarkana, AR.

02/06/2020

TAFD would like to congratulate Captain Jerry Anderson on his recent retirement! Captain Anderson served the City for 28 years. Enjoy your retirement Jerry and good luck in your future endeavors.

02/06/2020

TAFD Captain and Local 502 President Jeff Pritchett participated in the ground breaking for new dorms at the Arkansas Fire Academy. These dorms were much needed and will help keep the Academy a top-notch facility.

01/21/2020

Truck 1 moving into position at the Fifth Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade. Dr. King spoke many powerful quotes in his lifetime but one of the most inspiring for firefighters is "No one really knows why they are alive until they know what they'd die for."

12/30/2019

TAFD would like to wish everyone a Happy and Safe New Year! Remember, if you choose to drink while celebrating, please do so responsibly. Senseless tragedies are no way to usher in the new year.

12/11/2019

A big Thank You to TaMolly's for once again providing lunch to all three of our crews. The food and the service was outstanding! TaMolly's generosity definitely made Christmas time a little more special for our personnel.

12/03/2019

This picture shows what Shop With a Cop and Firefighter is all about. TAFD is blessed to be able to participate in this event.

12/03/2019

Congratulations to Cody Cunningham for his promotion to Engineer and Tyler Gilliam for completing his probationary period. Cody's badge was pinned by his Grandpa Ronnie Smith and Tyler's badge was pinned by his dad, Captain Marcus Gilliam.

11/19/2019

Want to get a group of firefighters in an argument? Ask them which hose load is the best. B-Crew was out today training on a different load than we have traditionally used. We will test it for a few months to see if it works better for us.

11/06/2019

TAFD would like to congratulate Chad Honea for his promotion to Battalion Chief, Adam Grayson for his promotion to Captain, and Josh Moore for his promotion to Engineer. Former TAFD Fire Chief Bobby Honea pinned the badge on his son Chad.

10/29/2019

Congratulations to our three most recent retirees! Battalion Chief Robert Hubnik served the City for 26 years, Engineer William Holt served for 17 years, and Firefighter Josh Davis served for 20 years. We hope these three men enjoy their retirement and wish them luck in their future endeavors.

10/28/2019

TAFD personnel had a great time teaching fire safety to all of our TASD Elementary Schools during Fire Prevention Week. The students watched a fire safety video, practiced stop, drop, and roll, and learned basic fire safety tips. Fun activities included watching two of TAFD's best race to put their gear on and, of course, getting to meet FirePup.

10/08/2019

Congratulations to Clark Hicks, Brandon Kidd, and Brett Suggs for their recent graduation from the AR Fire Academy. We wish them all a long and successful career.

09/25/2019

Congratulations to Firefighter Casey Tillett for successfully completing his probation period. Casey's badge was pinned by his lovely wife Ashley.

09/18/2019

C-crew personnel recently assisted the Scott Joplin Support Group with lifting a support base for artwork to the top of the Silvermoon on Broad building. The 500 pound weight was not a problem for our reserve ladder truck and its skilled operators. TAFD strives to be a good partner to local agencies in Texarkana.

09/04/2019

TAFD Recruiting Video

Ever thought about a career in the fire service? You can make a difference! Contact the Texarkana, AR Fire Department at 870-779-4956 for information on how to become a firefighter.

08/29/2019

TAFD would like to thank U.S. Lawns of Texarkana for their offer of providing a basic lawn service to any police officer or firefighter injured in the line of duty during their recovery time at no cost. U.S. Lawns is operated by three former TAPD officers. Their offer to help their former brothers and sisters shows the kind of character that you would want out of people taking care of your property. Give them a call at 903-306-0549 for your lawn care needs.