Nacogdoches Fire & Rescue

05/29/2026

We've slowly made our way through all of our modern apparatus here at Nacogdoches Fire & Rescue and today we're going to talk about the final one, which is probably the most recognizable type of fire truck, the ladder truck.

Ladder trucks are a type of apparatus that have been around the fire service since the late 1800s. Back then it was just a truck with a large bed that could hold the wooden ladder that was manually extended to reach tall buildings at roughly 70 feet. Today, this feature is done using an electric powered hydraulic system and can extend to 100 feet or sometimes more. Many modern engines also have the capability to extend stabilizers that ensure the vehicle is level and does not move when operating the tower/ladder.

We currently have a 2020 Pierce Tower and our primary purpose in having this apparatus is to use it on multi-story structures. Some departments have just a ladder that firefighters will extend then climb themselves, ours is an aerial platform that firefighters can take directly to the needed floor, move around while extended, and have room to carry victims back down. The platform can also extend directly out or below level to help with water or low angle rescues.

Other features of our tower include pumping capabilities and an air cylinder in the bucket. Not all ladder/tower trucks have pumping capabilities but ours does in order to have a hose line to fight fires from above and to help our local ISO rating for insurance purposes. The air cylinder, often called a Supplied Air System, provides breathable air for firefighters or victims directly from the tower's air source. This can help reduce weight from carrying the SCBA or provide an alternate source of air if failure occurs.

Make sure you keep an eye out for any future events where we might be at to show off some of our fire trucks! If you ever have any questions about what we have or want a closer look don't hesitate to reach out or stop by our admin office.

05/06/2026

Between the calls we get each day and the various to-dos that come up, like our yearly gear and hose testing, we still go out and help with community events or multi-department trainings. We’ve been pretty busy lately so here’s a snapshot of what’s been going on!

Last week we showed off what we do to this year’s LOT Crew. These Leaders of Tomorrow had the opportunity to check out the hoses, take a lift in our tower, and try out the extrication tools.

We also participated in the full-scale training exercise at SFA. While we hope we never have to put some of what we practice into action, we always want to make sure we’re prepared for any event. For large-scale events with multiple agencies it’s important that we run through different scenarios to make chaotic moments run as smoothly as possible.

04/22/2026

Sometimes you don’t have to travel far to participate in great educational opportunities. This job requires us to learn new techniques or refresh what we already know on a regular basis so when the opportunity to join a class like this is available we will try to have someone there. Rescue calls are some of our most common calls and we want to make sure we are ready to go for whatever situation a vehicle or patient may be in.

04/15/2026

We want to say a big “THANK YOU” to all of our dispatchers!

We couldn’t do our jobs without you. You tackle the calls between Police, Fire, and EMS as well as calls between the City and County. You help make sure we have as much information as possible in the few minutes we have before arriving on scene. You’re up all hours of the night to make sure we don’t miss those 3AM emergencies. We appreciate each of you for all the hard work you do to help keep everyone safe.

Make sure you check out NPD’s page for more info about each dispatcher and see the face/name behind the voice!

Today, April 12th marks the start of National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week across the nation.

This week, we recognize the voices behind the calls—the calm in the chaos and the steady presence in someone’s worst moment. Our dispatchers are the unseen first responders, working tirelessly behind the scenes to serve and protect our community every single day.

We’re kicking off the week with a group photo of our incredible dispatch team. Stay tuned as we highlight the amazing individuals who make a difference with every call they take.

Thank you to our dispatchers for your dedication, strength, and heart—you truly are the lifeline of our community. 💛📞

04/08/2026

It’s been a while since we started our posts about the various apparatus we have here at Nacogdoches Fire & Rescue, so we figured we would pick it back up with talking about the newest addition to the fleet.

We have three Wildland Engines, which are also known as Boosters or brush trucks. They are a type of engine you might not see around town as often due to these mostly being used on deployments and large local grass fires. They typically hold around 500 gallons of water and have the special ability to pump water while the vehicle is still moving due to their power-take-off (PTO) pump. This feature is important because the wind can quickly push the fire in different directions and this allows the crew to move with or get ahead of the fire. Due to the nature of most of our deployments being in West Texas where hydrants are not readily available, our Boosters are equipped with "Red Line" hoses, which are 1 inch hoses that don't put out as much pressure in order to conserve water. We refill the tanks with available means such as ponds, windmills, tanker trucks, or driving several miles to the nearest hydrant.

The newest engine in our fleet is our Booster 3, a 2024 BME Type III Wildland Engine that replaced a 1994 Ford F800 Type III. Purchase of this engine was possible through the reimbursements we've received from our participation in the TIFMAS program.

03/20/2026

We love what we do and we love talking about it! The safety of the citizens of Nacogdoches is our number 1 priority and we’re happy to answer any questions you may have and share what programs we have available to the community.

We want to give a special thank you to Ms. Birdie for taking time from her busy day to do such a great interview with our Assistant Chief.

03/13/2026

In anticipation of our new fire engine we wanted to share some of our historic fire apparatus with you, especially since we received one around this time 115 years ago.

On March 11, 1911 the Fire Department received their new fire wagon, which was equipped with a fifty gallon chemical engine, two auxiliary hand chemicals, two hundred feet of hose, one thousand feet of 2 1/2 in hydrant hose, a 30 foot telescope ladder, and one 10 foot roof ladder with axes and hooks. This 6,000 pound apparatus was the latest in firefighting technology. In the March 13 edition of the Daily Sentinel, the newspaper wrote about Pat Murphy taking the new wagon around downtown with horses Joe and Jim (first picture) for the “inspection of the citizens and try the various streets of the City.”

Prior to this apparatus, the department used horse-drawn or even hand-drawn wagons that essentially just moved hoses around, whereas the one purchased in 1911 was more of a fire extinguisher itself. The chemical tank housed a mixture of baking soda and water and a chemical reaction was triggered when a plunger holding sulfuric acid was released. The CO2 would hopefully smother the fire while the crew waited for others to arrive to pump water from a hydrant if needed. In 1916 the department added a Ford Model T that served the same purpose, it just arrived to the incidents faster. Finally in 1924 the department completely modernized with the arrival of Big Bertha, the first engine that stored and pumped water.

03/05/2026

We're excited to share the beginnings of a new collaborative project between us and the Nacogdoches High School Career and Technical Education Program! Over the next year or so, students from various CTE programs such as Agricultural Engineering (welding), Construction & Carpentry, and Marketing & Sales will work together to make dining tables for our new stations. This project gives these students an opportunity to design/present their ideas and physically create something that will last years to come.

This week, the students in the Entrepreneurship class met with each shift to discuss their design ideas. They've done some research on what other departments have done and the history of Nacogdoches Fire & Rescue but they wanted to meet with everyone to get opinions on things such as the style and what will represent each station. In a few weeks they'll meet with our committee to present their final designs for everyone to vote on. We’re so excited to get this started and can't wait to see what they come up with!

02/24/2026

We can’t spoil EVERYTHING, but here’s a sneak peak at some of the changes happening with our museum!

We love sharing the history of our department with everyone and we wanted a better way to get that message across. The updates will also showcase what we do and provide better context to the items on display.

You’re more than welcome to stop by in the meantime but you’ll have to forgive the mess as we update some of our signage and redo the displays.

02/06/2026

Early last week our friends at Visit Nacogdoches shared a post about the Charles Hoya Land Office and how it is considered the first fireproof building in Nacogdoches. This post, along with the recent history tour we were part of, inspired us to share with you some of the history of firefighting and fire prevention in Nacogdoches.

The structure was built circa 1897 in Downtown Nacogdoches for Hoya to use for his land surveying business. He needed a secure building to house the important and irreplaceable documents he worked with so he enlisted the help of architect Frank E. Rue who designed the building to include non-flammable materials such as steel and iron. Rue also used innovative techniques such as double brick walls with air space in between to provide insulation. You can see on the Sanborn Insurance maps that there were already brick buildings downtown (mostly those connected to one another) but this was supposedly the first building to use these specific fire prevention techniques.

Of course people can only use the resources available to them so iron/steel structures were not around in the United States until the mid 1800s. Fire prevention tactics are also more often reactive because people are unaware of what causes problems until they happen. People have always tried to prevent fire from spreading to other structures by using stone, bricks, etc., but modern standards require new constructions to have preventative measures such as fire walls or sprinklers based on the type of structure and occupancy levels.