About Us
What does HC ESD #4 do for the community?
Henderson County Emergency Services District #4 is a local government organization that helps make sure people in its area — mainly around the city of Tool, Texas — have fire and emergency services when they need them.
It collects local tax money and uses it to:
- Support the Tool Fire Department, which provides fire protection and rescue services for the community.
- Buy and maintain fire trucks, equipment, and stations so firefighters can respond quickly and safely.
- Help fund emergency response operations, like fighting fires, responding to car wrecks, and assisting in other emergencies.
Henderson County ESD #4 helps ensure the Tool, Texas area has reliable fire and emergency services. It collects local taxes to fund the Tool Fire Department, maintain fire trucks and equipment, and support firefighters who respond to fires, accidents, and other emergencies. In short, ESD #4 keeps the community safe by funding and overseeing essential emergency response services.
Meetings are held at 525 S. Tool Dr. Tool, Texas 75143 on the 3rd Tuesday of each month at 7:00pm and are open to the public.
Our Progress for the Community
From January 2025 through July 2026, Henderson County ESD #4 has put district funds and grant dollars to work for the Tool Fire Department and the community we serve.
$95,000 in grant funding
secured for rescue tools, firefighter gear and brush truck equipment.
About $644 per month saved
by renegotiating services and correcting insurance coverage.
New Apparatus and Vehicles
- New 2,500 to 3,000 gallon tanker
- New brush truck, fitted with a brush bed and a grant-funded skid unit
- New command vehicle with a 250 to 300 gallon foam skid unit
- Skid steer with a Fyrbx attachment and trailer, for wildland fires and clearing downed trees from roadways
Firefighter Equipment and Safety
- New Genesis “Jaws of Life” rescue tools, with a hands-on demo and training (partly grant funded)
- 12 complete sets of bunker gear for volunteer firefighters (partly grant funded)
- A cascade system to refill SCBA air tanks at the station instead of driving to Gun Barrel City
- 20 SCBA air bottles, 10 harnesses and 10 masks
- 6 handheld radios and 18 pagers for department personnel
- Radio headsets, cell signal amplifiers, power inverters and dash cameras for district vehicles
- Chainsaws, backpack leaf blowers, and a blower for drying bunker gear
Training and Readiness
- Vector Solutions online fire and EMS training for the department
- 18 laptops that personnel can check out for online training and call reports
- Two large training displays at the station
- Skid steer and Fyrbx training, plus training with the District 8 mutual aid Fire Chief on the call activation and reporting app
- AT&T FirstNet service on 6 field iPads so crews stay connected on scene
Fire Station Improvements
- Replaced leaking upstairs windows that were causing mildew
- New refrigerator, dishwasher, oven and microwave
- New conference room chairs
- Regular professional cleaning and monthly pest control
- A storage container, screened from the road by new privacy fencing
- Pressure washers and shop vacuums for keeping vehicles clean
Transparency and Administration
- Launched this website to share meeting agendas, minutes, budgets and notices
- Added an outdoor display case at the station for meeting notices and a burn ban flag
- Hired a grant-writing service to help bring in more outside funding
- Moved utility accounts into the district’s name with automatic payment
- Returned titles for district-purchased vehicles to the ESD
- Updated equipment insurance to remove 5 vehicles the district no longer owns
- Switched cell service to AT&T, which included a new phone and 3 iPads at no cost
- Moved the district PO Box to Mabank after the Seven Points post office closed
