21 Dec 2012 'All time' fire department
Story and photos by Janna Virden
Being a firefighter is a high-risk occupation. Being a volunteer fireman in a small town or in a rural community means holding down a full-time job while being on call 24/7, 365 days a year in a high risk situation.
Morrilton Fire Chief Earle Eichenberger is the head of a 30-man team of volunteer firemen, most of who grew up in Morrilton or the surrounding communities. “They don’t do this for the money,” he said. “They do it to give back to their community.”
Eichenberger is a third-generation volunteer firefighter. His grandfather, father and uncle were all volunteer firefighters in Clarksville. He joined the Morrilton Fire Department in the early 70s and became chief in 2008.
The next year Morrilton had one of the biggest fires in the city’s history when the old Mitchell Building went up in flames. The old building was right in the heart of Downtown Morrilton and was packed with old furniture and antiques. It was a fire that could have easily gotten out of control and destroyed most of the historic downtown area.
“I feel responsible for everything that goes on in any fire scene,” Eichenberger said. “I really felt it that night the Mitchell building burned. I couldn’t be everywhere at once.”
Twenty-nine of his 30 men were able to respond, and, with help from numerous other departments, the fire was kept under control. Two of his men suffered minor injuries in the blaze that was later determined to be arson. Firefighters don’t just respond to fires, but also to car accidents and any other emergency situations.
In 2011 another disaster hit Downtown Morrilton when the Merle Norman building collapsed, killing a young child and injuring several others. Eichenberger says his men were particularly hard hit because many of them are fathers with young children. Still, the men have learned to keep their emotions in check and do the job they are required and trained to do.
“It’s hard when it is someone you know,” Eichenberger said. However, he says the homegrown knowledge does have its advantages. “Our response time to an emergency situation is about four minutes.”
The men wear pagers and carry their equipment in their cars, so when the call comes out from dispatch, they probably know where the location of the emergency is and the back roads to get to the location quicker.
He says his department averages about three calls a week. Though many of the calls are false alarms, his men have to respond regardless and treat each one like an emergency situation.
Eichenberger said his men’s employers are very understanding and know that this is what it takes to have a volunteer force. His men do get paid a small amount for runs, meetings and retirement, but they do it to keep their hometown safe.
The chief said one of the firefighter’s children was explaining about what their daddy did by saying, “He is an all-time fireman.” Eichenberger laughs and says that about sums it up.
501 LIFE would like to thank all of the volunteer firefighters throughout the 501 for their unselfish efforts in protecting the communities in which they live.
