Firefighter/EMT Colby McSpedden and Firefighter/EMT Max Turner completed a 7-week “mini-academy” that introduced them to the fire and EMS operations for the department.
They will now be assigned to a shift, where they will continue working through their probationary year as part of a crew and under the direction of a Fire Lieutenant.
Firefighter McSpedden grew up in Aubrey, Texas and likes to spend time at the lake and riding RZRs in the country. In the past, he’s volunteered for his own local fire department in Sadler, Texas and he’s excited get to know his new Southlake community.
Firefighter Turner is from Denton, Texas, and enjoys working out and rock climbing (two skills that will definitely help at his new career). He’s ready to make an impact for the Southlake community.
“Firefighter Turner and Firefighter McSpedden have a bright future here, and they’ll make the City of Southlake proud,” Chief Jonathan Castro said.
The City of Southlake has received notice from Tarrant County Public Health that one mosquito trap in Southlake has tested positive for West Nile Virus.
The positive West Nile Virus trap is located in the 800 block of Shady Lane.
The city will spray within a half-mile radius of the trap location. Spraying will occur between Thursday night, August 15th an Saturday night, August 17th, weather permitting. The chemicals in the spray are specifically designed to target mosquitos with a quick burn-off in sunlight to mitigate any pet health concerns.
Residents should continue taking protective measures to help reduce the mosquito population including:
· Drain standing water in artificial containers; this is the primary source of mosquitoes
· Dress in long sleeves
· Wear insect repellent containing DEET
For more information about West Nile Virus, personal protective measures, or response actions, please visit CityofSouthlake.com or MySouthlakeNews.com. As always, if you have any mosquito concerns, please reach out to our Emergency Management Department at (817) 748-8624 or email at kmeehan@cityofsouthlake.com.
The City of Southlake has received notice from Tarrant County Public Health that one mosquito trap in Southlake has tested positive for West Nile Virus.
The positive West Nile Virus trap is located in the 600 block of Winding Creek Court.
The city will spray within a half-mile radius of the trap location. Spraying will occur on Thursday night, July 25th through Saturday night, July 27th, weather permitting. The chemicals in the spray are specifically designed to target mosquitos with a quick burn-off in sunlight to mitigate any pet health concerns.
Residents should continue taking protective measures to help reduce the mosquito population including:
· Drain standing water in artificial containers; this is the primary source of mosquitoes
· Dress in long sleeves
· Wear insect repellent containing DEET
For more information about West Nile Virus, personal protective measures, or response actions, please visit CityofSouthlake.com or MySouthlakeNews.com. As always, if you have any mosquito concerns, please reach out to our Emergency Management Department at (817) 748-8624 or email at kmeehan@ci.southlake.tx.us.
The Southlake Fire Department has achieved the 2024 Mission: Lifeline EMS Gold Plus level recognition award, presented by the American Heart Association, for the third consecutive year. This accolade underscores the department's unwavering commitment to delivering rapid, evidence-based treatment to individuals suffering from severe heart attacks and strokes, ultimately saving lives.
Mission: Lifeline EMS® is a national initiative by the American Heart Association aimed at improving the system of care for patients with high-risk, time-sensitive conditions such as severe heart attacks and strokes. The program seeks to minimize barriers to prompt treatment, starting from the moment 911 is called, through EMS transport, and continuing with hospital care and discharge. Effective care for these patients necessitates seamless coordination between prehospital providers and healthcare systems.
Three Southlake Firefighters (Lt. Frank Molinets, Engineer Van Wakefield, and Engineer J.W. Stone) and six other North Central Texas Firefighters make up the nine-member Chisholm Trail Rescue Team (CTRT). The team recently competed in Grimpday Competition in Belgium from September 7 – September 10, 2022.
Grimpday is an international challenge that brings together search and rescue teams from around the world (firefighters, civil defense, military, and police). The challenge takes place in Namur, Belgium, where teams compete against each other through exercises involving the unique elements of search and rescue in hazardous environments. This event was created in 2006 by Namur’s regional fire department members.
Southlake Fire Lieutenant Frank Molinets said, “This was one of the most amazing experiences that I was able to be a part of. It is the Olympics of the rope rescue world.” 
The CTRT competed in 10 events total, including the “Dalton,” which was a rescue from a rollercoaster with a 190ft ascent, and patient rescue at 100ft above the surface. They also competed in the “Highline,” which was a water rescue over a canyon at 140ft. The North Central Texas team ranked 16th out of the 24 teams that competed, with a team from Japan taking overall first in the competition.
The CTRT put themselves in the running for Grimpday by competing in the Texas Rescue Competition in late 2021. Since then, they have worked tirelessly in preparation for this event, honing their skills with over 500 training hours since January. The team also was able to fundraise over $7,000.00 for their trip.
The skills the team displayed at Grimpday directly benefit the local community. The Southlake Fire Department and Northeast Tarrant County (NEFDA) are trained and supported by the CTRT, which is now internationally recognized.
“We had the ability to see and learn from the best of the best, and it is now our responsibility to pass that knowledge on,” stated Molinets.
Three Southlake Firefighters (Lt. Frank Molinets, Engineer Van Wakefield, and Engineer J.W. Stone) and six other North Central Texas Firefighters make up the nine-member Chisholm Trail Rescue Team (CTRT). The team recently competed in Grimpday Competition in Belgium from September 7 – September 10, 2022.
Grimpday is an international challenge that brings together search and rescue teams from around the world (firefighters, civil defense, military, and police). The challenge takes place in Namur, Belgium, where teams compete against each other through exercises involving the unique elements of search and rescue in hazardous environments. This event was created in 2006 by Namur’s regional fire department members.
Southlake Fire Lieutenant Frank Molinets said, “This was one of the most amazing experiences that I was able to be a part of. It is the Olympics of the rope rescue world.”
The CTRT competed in 10 events total, including the “Dalton,” which was a rescue from a rollercoaster with a 190ft ascent, and patient rescue at 100ft above the surface. They also competed in the “Highline,” which was a water rescue over a canyon at 140ft. The North Central Texas team ranked 16th out of the 24 teams that competed, with a team from Japan taking overall first in the competition.
The CTRT put themselves in the running for Grimpday by competing in the Texas Rescue Competition in late 2021. Since then, they have worked tirelessly in preparation for this event, honing their skills with over 500 training hours since January. The team also was able to fundraise over $7,000.00 for their trip.
The skills the team displayed at Grimpday directly benefit the local community. The Southlake Fire Department and Northeast Tarrant County (NEFDA) are trained and supported by the CTRT, which is now internationally recognized.
“We had the ability to see and learn from the best of the best, and it is now our responsibility to pass that knowledge on,” stated Molinets.
Three Southlake Firefighters (Lt. Frank Molinets, Engineer Van Wakefield, and Engineer J.W. Stone) and six other North Central Texas Firefighters make up the nine-member Chisholm Trail Rescue Team (CTRT). The team recently competed in Grimpday Competition in Belgium from September 7 – September 10, 2022.
Grimpday is an international challenge that brings together search and rescue teams from around the world (firefighters, civil defense, military, and police). The challenge takes place in Namur, Belgium, where teams compete against each other through exercises involving the unique elements of search and rescue in hazardous environments. This event was created in 2006 by Namur’s regional fire department members.
Southlake Fire Lieutenant Frank Molinets said, “This was one of the most amazing experiences that I was able to be a part of. It is the Olympics of the rope rescue world.”
The CTRT competed in 10 events total, including the “Dalton,” which was a rescue from a rollercoaster with a 190ft ascent, and patient rescue at 100ft above the surface. They also competed in the “Highline,” which was a water rescue over a canyon at 140ft. The North Central Texas team ranked 16th out of the 24 teams that competed, with a team from Japan taking overall first in the competition.
The CTRT put themselves in the running for Grimpday by competing in the Texas Rescue Competition in late 2021. Since then, they have worked tirelessly in preparation for this event, honing their skills with over 500 training hours since January. The team also was able to fundraise over $7,000.00 for their trip.
The skills the team displayed at Grimpday directly benefit the local community. The Southlake Fire Department and Northeast Tarrant County (NEFDA) are trained and supported by the CTRT, which is now internationally recognized.
“We had the ability to see and learn from the best of the best, and it is now our responsibility to pass that knowledge on,” stated Molinets.
During the September 20 City Council meeting, the Southlake Fire Department, along with City Response Personnel and Mutual Aid Response, were recognized for their recent actions and pre-planning efforts regarding the DalDen Corporation fire.
On August 17, crews responded to a fire incident at 4285 T.W. King Road. The DalDen Corporation is a manufacturing company for hazmat chemical filling and packaging.
Due to the severity of the fire and the presence of chemicals, a total of four alarms were requested. Other resources in use that day include:
Approximately 75 fire personnel arrived at the scene to combat the fire.
“Thanks to the pre-planning process and working with different departments and agencies, the fire was under control within 90 minutes,” Southlake Fire Chief Mike Starr said during the City Council presentation.
The pre-planning process played a significant role in containing the fire at DalDen Corporation. Before firefighters began putting out the fire, crews identified onsite chemicals and investigated how they would respond to water to avoid any reactions. Crews were also able to bring in equipment from Public Works to build dirt damns and stop the flow of hazardous run-off into creeks.
By implementing these procedures, the City and all partners can take precautionary measures and respond to emergencies effectively and efficiently.
“We enhance our response by our mutual aid part of the NEFDA group,” said Chief Starr, “Most of the cities are part of our NEFDA resources, and we trained with them constantly to make sure that we understand their capabilities; they understand our capabilities, and we had those specialty resources.”
“We had everybody from Public Works to PD to the building department,” Chief Starr said. “Our City team really steps up.”
To learn more about the City of Southlake’s Elements for Effective Fire Response, please watch the City Council presentation online.
During the September 20 City Council meeting, the Southlake Fire Department, along with City Response Personnel and Mutual Aid Response, were recognized for their recent actions and pre-planning efforts regarding the DalDen Corporation fire.
On August 17, crews responded to a fire incident at 4285 T.W. King Road. The DalDen Corporation is a manufacturing company for hazmat chemical filling and packaging.
Due to the severity of the fire and the presence of chemicals, a total of four alarms were requested. Other resources in use that day include:
Approximately 75 fire personnel arrived at the scene to combat the fire.
“Thanks to the pre-planning process and working with different departments and agencies, the fire was under control within 90 minutes,” Southlake Fire Chief Mike Starr said during the City Council presentation.
The pre-planning process played a significant role in containing the fire at DalDen Corporation. Before firefighters began putting out the fire, crews identified onsite chemicals and investigated how they would respond to water to avoid any reactions. Crews were also able to bring in equipment from Public Works to build dirt damns and stop the flow of hazardous run-off into creeks.
By implementing these procedures, the City and all partners can take precautionary measures and respond to emergencies effectively and efficiently.
“We enhance our response by our mutual aid part of the NEFDA group,” said Chief Starr, “Most of the cities are part of our NEFDA resources, and we trained with them constantly to make sure that we understand their capabilities; they understand our capabilities, and we had those specialty resources.”
“We had everybody from Public Works to PD to the building department,” Chief Starr said. “Our City team really steps up.”
To learn more about the City of Southlake’s Elements for Effective Fire Response, please watch the City Council presentation online.
On September 15, at 3:32 PM, the Southlake Fire Department was called to a possible structure fire in the 1200 block of Fanning Street. The first unit arrived on the scene at 3:39 PM.
Upon arrival, firefighters found smoke showing from the roof. Additional fire units were immediately requested, and a working fire was declared. Firefighters first attacked the home's attic to extinguish the fire quickly but then had to evacuate due to the instability of the structure's roof.
Fire crews moved outside to protect surrounding homes and continue fire suppression efforts. The fire was under control at approximately 5:30 PM and was fully extinguished at 10:04 PM. Southlake fire crews remained on the scene throughout the night on fire watch to prevent the rekindling of the fire.
One person was injured in the fire and transported to the hospital. There were no firefighter injuries. The fire is under investigation.
The following cities provided Mutual Aid: Keller, Westlake, Colleyville, Grapevine, Fort Worth, North Richland Hills, Hurst, and Roanoke.
