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BPD officers honor those who died on duty
To honor an on-duty officer who was fatally struck by an alleged drunk driver, the Beaumont Police Department (BPD) announced a balloon release for 8 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 8 in the Calvary Beaumont parking lot on Dowlen Road.
The ceremony to honor BPD Officer Sheena Dae Yarbrough-Powell, a 23-year-old Lumberton native, will be held just over a year after the Aug. 8, 2020 collision.
The incident took place around 2:30 a.m. that Sunday when Yarbrough-Powell and Officer Gabriel Fells, 28, were northbound on Cardinal Drive. Responding officers say their coworkers were struck head on by a Ford Mustang traveling the wrong direction.
“It’s a sad day for the Beaumont Police Department,” said Beaumont Police Chief James Singletary at a press conference hours after the crash. “(Fells) was transported to the hospital with severe injuries, but is stable. Unfortunately, his partner did not survive her injuries.”
Singletary told reporters Yarbrough-Powell was sworn in January 2019 and married months later in October 2019.
“From karate chopping best friends in the throat to wrestling sisters to the ground over shoes, she showed her true competitive nature,” reads Yarbrough-Powell’s obituary. “She took pleasure in annihilating family and friends in board games, random dance-offs, and workouts. She had an innate ability to make others smile with her glowing personality and was an amazing, genuine woman.”
The weekend after her death, the Beaumont community gathered en masse to honor the fallen officer’s service. Droves of Southeast Texans lined streets, clutching American flags and well-wishing signs along the path from the funeral home to Calvary Baptist, where the ceremony was held.