Shelby County Today

Photo courtesy WSCVFD

August 17, 2026 - State Highway 7 West (SH7W) was the scene of a vehicle fire early Thursday morning, August 13, 2026. 

The fire was in the 7000 block of SH7W where West Shelby County Volunteer Fire Department (WSCVFD) personnel, and Shelby County Sheriff’s Department responded at 4:08am.

A cause for the fire wasn’t immediately determined, but was suspected to have been electrical in nature.

No injuries were reported to have resulted from the fire.

Photo courtesy WSCVFD

Photo courtesy WSCVFD

August 16, 2026 - A Heat Advisory will remain in effect across our entire Four-State Region through at least Tuesday, as afternoon heat indices will average between 105 to 109 degrees each day. Heed all heat safety protocols if you plan to spend extended time outdoors!

Hot and dry conditions will contribute to increased fire danger Today across the entire Four State Region. Follow burn guidance of local officials, as Shelby County and several counties/parishes are currently under burn bans.

Another day of triple digit temperatures as most all areas should see afternoon highs ranging from near 100 to near 104 degrees. Afternoon maximum heat indices will climb to near 105 to 109 degrees as well. Use precautions if outdoor activities are planned.

The National Weather Service, Shreveport, LA issued at 11:46pm Saturday, August 15, 2026 a Heat Advisory which now is in effect until 8pm Tuesday.

Heat index values up to 109 are expected for portions of south central and southwest Arkansas, north central and northwest Louisiana, southeast Oklahoma, and east and northeast Texas.

Until 8pm Tuesday, hot temperatures and high humidity may cause heat illnesses.

Precautionary/Preparedness Actions:

• Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors.
• Take extra precautions when outside.
  ^o  Wear lightweight and loose fitting clothing.
  ^o  Try to limit strenuous activities to early morning or evening.
  ^o  Take action when you see symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

To reduce risk during outdoor work, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration recommends scheduling frequent rest breaks in shaded or air conditioned environments. Anyone overcome by heat should be moved to a cool and shaded location. Heat stroke is an emergency! Call 9 1 1.

August 14, 2026 - The Shelby County Sheriff's Department is requesting assistance in locating Joseph Pate who is a white male, 76 years of age, 5'9" tall, weighing 160 lbs. He was last seen Friday morning at his residence, in the Fellowship Community, near Joaquin wearing a long sleeve blue plaid shirt, dark colored jogging pants, and an SFA ball cap.

According to the Sheriff's Department, he was possibly walking on FM 2787, south of FM 139, at some point today or in the area of CR 3569. He will possibly have a large brown-colored dog with him.

Pate is an Alzheimer's patient and his face will possibly appear more slender than in photo. He also has a full beard as well.

It is possible that someone could have given him a ride from this area.

If anyone has any information concerning his whereabouts, please contact the Sheriff's office immediately at 936-598-5601, option 1. Thank you in advance for any assistance you can provide.

Along with Shelby County Constables and the Sheriff's Department, area fire departments have been assisting by searching the area south of the FM 2787 and FM 139 intersection heading towards the Campti area. DeSoto Parish has a helicopter on scene to provide a birds eye view.

Sabine River Authority representatives and city of Tenaha officials gathered at the Tenaha City hall for the grant presentation held Tuesday, August 11, 2026. Pictured are (from left): Bill Holmes, Tenaha Alderman; Travis Williams, Deputy General Manager for Sabine River Authority (SRA); Orinthia Johnson, Tenaha Alderman; Michael Davidson, Tenaha Police Chief; O’Neal Jones, Tenaha Mayor; Don Iles, SRA Regional Manager; Cliff Todd, SRA Board President; Stacy Cranford, Tenaha Water/Wastewater Administrator; Amanda Treat-Brock; Tenaha City Secretary; Tom Beall, SRA Board Member; Darrin Rudolph, SRA Board Member; and Zach Johnson, SRA Director of Governmental and Legislative Affairs. 

August 12, 2026 - Sabine River Authority representatives visited the city of Tenaha on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, to present a grant for $30,000.

Travis Williams, Deputy General Manager for Sabine River Authority, spoke on the grant funds and how the authority is able to make them available.

“I appreciate everyone coming today, Zach’s been working with the city, I know we got our grant process and I know y’all are aware that our board did award a $30,000 grant to the city of Tenaha at our last board meeting,” said Williams.

He highlighted that the city is currently performing work on their water tower and the Sabine River Authority board’s interest in the program.

“These are funds that our board allocates every year in our budget, and they enjoy the process, they enjoy the project and I know I’ve even heard our president Cliff Todd say it’s his favorite program that we have,” said Williams.

Williams explained that Todd’s affinity for the project is because it gives back to the communities in the Sabine basin.

“What you may not know about these grant funds is that they come from a contract that we have on Lake Fork and they come from their contract between the Sabine River Authority and the City of Dallas where we’re sending them water out of the basin to the city of Dallas,” said Williams. “In exchange, they pay for the reservoir, they also send money back to the basin at large so we kind spread it across, and it’s been very well received.”

Williams elaborated that communities everywhere are in need of funds for all kinds of projects. The board is limited to grant $30,000, which does help to get some projects accomplished.

Don Iles, Regional Manager, also interjected that the funds don’t come from the taxpayer.

Cliff Todd, Board President, commented on their enthusiasm in being able to help local communities with their projects. 

“It’s small rural communities, which I live in one, money is always a project to keep some of these things going and we’re just honored to be able to help y’all,” said Todd.

Amanda Treat-Brock, Tenaha City Secretary, shared that two of the city’s current projects are grant funded and will benefit from the assistance of the SRA grant.

“We applied for some of these grants back during Covid and the prices just skyrocketed so we were kind of short-ended so you see the construction on our tower here, that helps us out with that,” said Treat-Brock. “Wastewater, we actually have two going in the process and this helped us find money we couldn’t find in other ways to help with that. It’s very appreciated.”

Iles asked how much it costs to rehab the water tower in the city and Treat-Brock shared that one of the projects the city has ongoing is $2.6 million and another one is $3.9 million. She explained the granting agencies are from the General Land Office and Texas Department of Agriculture. Iles inquired how many customers Tenaha serves and Treat-Brock said 516, which are inside and outside of the city limits.