East Texas VFD Gets Fresh Start

LONGVIEW — With a new fire chief and crew, the Clarksville City – Warren City Volunteer Fire Department is set to begin guarding residents once again. That report comes from KETK and the Longview News-Journal. In a clean sweep two weeks ago, the executive board that oversees the department locked all members of the volunteer service out of the station, citing ongoing concerns about the readiness of the department to serve in an emergency. Derek Zivney, who has 12 years experience in fire prevention and served two years with the Clarksville City – Warren City VFD, was appointed as the new chief for the department on Thursday by the executive board.

“The residents of these cities are going to be protected by people that will be certified and will have the training done,” said Richard Rogers, president of the fire department’s editorial board. “We will have a much better fire department in a short period of time; a lot of these young firefighters have been trained.” The Clarksville City – Warren City VFD had been led by Ricky Wallace for years. Wallace declined comment on the reorganization.