Farewell To The Chief

Roberts Retires After 38 Years Working As Firefighter

Quinn Roberts, former Springdale Fire Department battalion chief, has retired after 38 years with the department.
Quinn Roberts, former Springdale Fire Department battalion chief, has retired after 38 years with the department.

— Quinn Roberts, despite the rumors in the fire station, didn’t start working as a firefighter when horses pulled fire wagons.

Roberts, who joined the Springdale Fire Department in October 1974, has seen big changes in his 38 years with the city. Roberts, 59, retired Jan. 31 as a battalion chief in a department of 113 firefighters in six stations.

“When I started, we had 28 men, counting the chief and assistant chief,” Roberts said. “We worked out of three stations.”

Roberts was hired by Mickey Jackson, who retired as Springdale fire chief to go to Fayetteville, where he also retired as fire chief.

Go And Do

Retirement Party

The Fire Department will hold a drop-in retirement party for Quinn Roberts from 3 to 5 p.m. today in the training room at Station No. 1, 417 Holcomb St.

Source: Staff Report

“That was the best hire the city ever made,” Jackson said of Roberts. “I marveled at his common sense. He could look at a problem and come up with a common-sense solution faster than anyone else could.”

Roberts, as a battalion chief, headed one of three 24-hour shifts at the Fire Department for nearly a decade. His experience was invaluable to some of the younger firefighters, said Kevin McDonald, assistant fire chief.

“He was a firefighter longer than 90 percent of our people have been alive,” McDonald said.

Roberts, who grew up in Elkins, was working for Washington County Ambulance, the forerunner of Central EMS, when Jackson hired him.

“I was young, restless and looking for something exciting to do,” Roberts said. “I didn’t realize how dangerous it was.”

That realization came a few years later when he was cutting a ventilation hole in the rotted roof of a burning business on Emma Avenue.

“I just raised up my ax when the roof gave way,” Roberts said. “I would have fallen through the hole but the hose on my airpack caught me.”

His partner on the roof, Bob Tankersley Jr., pulled him to safety. Another close call came on Sunset Avenue when debris from an exploding gasoline tanker flew between Roberts and another firefighter. The men were standing about 6 feet apart.

“A policeman walked up and said that was a close call,” Roberts said. “ It had to go between us. We never saw it.”

Roberts’ knowledge of Fire Department history helped Chief Mike Irwin get up to speed, Irwin said. Irwin took the job in August.

“We are losing a valuable asset,” Irwin said.

Dan White, who served as chief of Springdale and Bentonville, said Roberts helped him when he started with Springdale in 1974.

“He was one of the coolest heads in emergencies I ever knew,” White said.

Roberts said he owed a lot to his wife Verlita, his son, daughter and four grandchildren.

“I missed a lot of school events, holidays and family reunions while I was working,” Roberts said. “My wife had to go to those without me. She never complained.”

Roberts said he never dreaded coming to work.

“It not only was exciting, it gave you a chance to help people,” Roberts said. “I think that’s why most firefighters like their job.”

Upcoming Events