All 17 volunteer firemen who resigned last week have returned

Published 11:04 am Thursday, January 29, 2026

All 17 volunteer firemen from the Beauregard Fire Protection District 3 who resigned nine days ago after board president Ruth Huckaby was voted out of her position have returned.

In a special session Tuesday night, the Beauregard Parish Police Jury accepted the resignation of Michael Atkinson, who was appointed president after Huckaby’s oust, from the board. The jury will accept applications through Feb. 2 to fill the remaining term of Atkinson’s position as a board member, which expires on July 11.

The new appointee will be determined at the Feb. 3 Beauregard Parish Police Jury’s special session.

Following Atkinson’s resignation, Raymond Maylen is now the chairperson of Fire District 3 Board. Maylen said all 17 volunteer firemen who resigned on Jan. 20 returned to their positions just prior to the start of Winter Storm Fern.

“They came to me and asked me about coming back because we did not want the community left without having seats in the trucks and they all agreed to come back,” Maylen said. “They came back for the right reasons.”

Board secretary Tammy Wilson has also agreed to temporarily return to her position. The board is accepting applications to fill that position. Gary Dear will continue to serve as interim chief of the district.

Former Interim Chief Lee Williams said he came back to help the community not be in a situation during the ice storm this previous weekend.

“We didn’t want to leave everybody stuck out in an ice storm and there’s nobody responding,” Williams said. “We’re here to help the community and we didn’t want to leave the community in this time of need.”

Williams had been serving as interim chief since October when Chief Daryl Binford was suspended by the board for allegedly falsifying records, mishandling funds, and mishandling calls — including a CPR call. An investigation remains underway by Louisiana State Police.

Huckaby had served on the Beauregard Fire Protection District 3 for three years and was voted president last year. Huckaby told the American Press last week that she feels she was voted out as president due to the way she handled Binford’s suspension. Though no longer president, Huckaby remains on the board.