City Mourns Death of Assistant Fire Chief

JACKSONVILLE — The Jacksonville community is mourning the loss of Assistant Fire Chief Dennis Tate. His sudden passing was a shock to many. Tate passed away Saturday in Jacksonville. No word on the cause of his death. Tate started work with the Jacksonville Fire Department in June of 1988. He served as the Fire Marshall and Assistant Fire Chief. His certifications include being a Fire Inspector and Investigator, Advanced Fire Fighter, EMT-I, Fire Instructor and he recently earned his Peace Officer badge. His duties with the department included supervising and training personnel, fire prevention, fire code enforcement and fire inspections. He was 58.

The funeral service is scheduled at 2:00 today at Central Baptist Church in Jacksonville. He will be laid to rest at Still Waters Memorial Gardens with full honors by The Jacksonville Fire Department. Services are under the direction of Autry Funeral Home in Jacksonville.

Chief Tate is survived by his wife and many family members including 12 grandchildren and 4 great grandchildren.