Community grieves loss of young firefighter

MISSION -- Arturo Villarreal needed to make some last-minute holiday purchases Tuesday night when he asked his boss for permission to end his shift early. He would have to work the next day, but at least he would get to spend Christmas day with his wife and children.

Hours later, Villarreal, 26, of Mission, was riding in a Nissan Altima with some friends when it crashed off North McColl Road in McAllen. Villarreal and Jose Rolando Hernandez, 34, of Progreso, died. The wreck is currently under investigation by the McAllen police department, said David Ertter, a spokesman for the McAllen police department.

Villarreal, like his father, was an Alton firefighter. He was studying at the Rio Grande Valley Regional Firefighter Academy and would have completed his training to become a professional firefighter in about a month and a half.

"Art was a family man ... he loved his children and he was always thinking about his wife," said Alton fire Chief Elias Saldivar, who is speaking for friends and family during their grieving period. "He was one of those guys that, no matter what, he'd cover for you. It's a sad loss because he was a person of good character."

Dozens of uniformed firefighters and police officers from various jurisdictions gathered at his rosary at Ric Brown Family Funeral Home in Mission on Friday. One man walked down the prayer room's main aisle as he proudly carried Villarreal's firefighter's coat.

The chief said he was in disbelief when Villarreal's father called him to tell him about his son's death.

"I thought he was playing a prank on us," he said. "We just couldn't believe it."

The wreck also critically injured Gerardo Ramirez Jr., 25, of McAllen. Ramirez also is a firefighter at the department. Chief Saldivar said his fellow coworkers have visited Ramirez at the hospital and they're anxious to see him recover from his injures.

"We want him to come back," the chief said.

Arturo leaves behind a young wife, two children and a close-knit circle of friends at the Alton fire department.

"The brotherhood was there," Saldivar said. "The guys are really missing him."

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Ana Ley covers law enforcement and general assignments for The Monitor. She can be reached at (956) 683-4428.