BENTON COUNTY, ARKANSAS, Ark. — Only 28 of the state's 1,003 fire departments are fully staffed with career, fully paid employees, according to the Arkansas Division of Emergency Management.
That means 97% of the state relies on part-time or volunteer firefighters to help keep residents, especially in rural communities, safe.
Of the 28 employees at the Beaver Lake Fire Department, only three are staffed full-time.
"We have some that are nurses, we have some that work in factories," firefighter Tyler Harrell said. "We have some other fire department guys that work full time at the city. We have guys that work on our diesel mechanics. All walks of life come to be volunteers."
Harrell works for the Rogers Fire Department as well as the Beaver Lake. He said the department at Beaver Lake responds to fires, gas calls, and medical emergencies. The department oversees over 12 square miles of land and close to 7,000 residents.
In 2023, Capt. Justin Stanbery of the Beaver Lake Fire Department said they responded to 503 calls last year and have already responded to 407 calls in 2024.
"Rogers is our closest full-time department, and so us being out here and being there on scene before they are, kind of gives them a heads up, and it kind of helps them out, and also puts out the fire a little bit quicker," Harrell said.
While there are many benefits to having smaller, local departments in rural areas in the state, there are also some struggles associated with it.
"I would say the biggest struggle that a lot of people ... point out our manpower and our staffing," firefighter Elijah Ballou said.
Ballou said that while fire responses in a city or other parts of the county may have about 20 firefighters on the scene quickly, more rural areas will have about 10 to 15 firefighters within the first 20 to 30 minutes. He said although they may be fewer in numbers, camaraderie among the staff helps greatly when responding to emergencies.
He said it’s important for residents in the remote parts of Beaver Lake to know that they have coverage with the local firefighters in the area.
"It comes down to a manpower issue right now, the national standard for a structure fire is 19 guys. We don't have 19 guys on staff at one time," Stanbery said. "Piney Point doesn't have 19 guys show up at one time. Rocky Branch doesn't have 19. We all help each other out to get the job done."
According to Harrell, the Beaver Lake Fire Department always has at least one person on staff, which is rare for a volunteer/part-time fire department.
He said the department has three live-ins who stay overnight, a part-time employee throughout the day, and usually one full-time employee at the station.
The department relies on residential dues, paid through property taxes and donations to keep their two stations operating and staffed. Stanbery said the department was working with an annual budget of $500,000 collected from dues.
"Usually maintenance and upkeep isn't that much because we're not running them that much, but when stuff does go down, like this truck here beside us, it was $1,800 for the rear set of brake pads," Stanbery said. "Nobody plans on things breaking. We paid $30,000 for a motor rebuild in it last year."
While firefighting is a job for some, for others, it’s a way to give back to their community.
Ballou grew up around Beaver Lake and started his firefighting career volunteering at the Piney Point Fire Department in 2021. In May, Ballou graduated from nursing school as an ER Nurse.
He was working as a full-time nurse until he recently decided to take up part-time shifts at the Beaver Lake Fire Department.
"I was able to get a lot of good study time in and still make my clinical dates and fulfill all my commitments as far as school is concerned, while still being able to serve out here as a firefighter and still be able to respond to emergencies," Ballou said.
At first, Ballou said it took a minute to get used to responding to calls around the area he grew up in. Now, he said it’s important for him to be serving his community.
He said nursing was a way to expand his knowledge, but firefighting has always been his passion.
"It's been my childhood dream," Ballou said. "It's been something I've always enjoyed doing, ever since I started volunteering. And I just love being able to do both. It's very fulfilling and rewarding for me personally."
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