David Abernathy holds Master Certifications as a firefighter and a peace officer. He is a deputy lead for one of the Texas All-Hazard Incident Management teams. Abernathy retired as an assistant chief regional fire coordinator from the Texas A&M Forest Service (TAMFS), where he was responsible for fire and all-hazard incidents. In 2014, he returned to the TAMFS in a part-time position to conduct internal and external training and incident management. Abernathy was instrumental in developing Class A foam and proportioning rates that are the worldwide standard. He was the first volunteer firefighter to be appointed presiding officer of the Texas Commission on Fire Protection. Abernathy has been an active member of the Pittsburg, TX, Fire Department for more than 50 years and served for 32 years as chief. He is a consultant and works for BFX Fire Apparatus.