To Gwen King, the addition of a new fire truck to Lowndes County Fire District 4’s modest fleet is a sign of a slowly-improving district.
The District 4 Volunteer Fire Department Board chairwoman believes the state-of-the-art vehicle — one of three, two of which work well, at the station that serves the town of Crawford — is a positive addition that speaks to the county’s dedication to fire response.
“We’ve got two really good fire engines near Crawford now,” she said. “Not only will we be able to have volunteers at one emergency, but if a second arises, we have another reliable engine to get them there.”
Lowndes County purchased the $253,200 truck from its general operating budget this year, and a $70,000 Rural Fire Truck Acquisition grant will reimburse the county for $70,000 of the purchase, according to Lowndes County Rural Fire Services Coordinator Neal Austin.
“They have so much technology built into them now,” he said. “That’s why it’s so expensive. … That truck will respond everywhere from the Tombigbee River to the edge of the county. It’s great — I wish we had another one.”
The addition of a new fire truck to District 4 is expected to decrease emergency response times which, in turn, will hopefully improve the district’s fire rating, Austin said. Ratings, set by a state board on a scale of 1 to 10 — with Class 1 indicating the best protection — can greatly impact homeowner’s insurance premiums within a fire district. The better the rating, the lower the premium.
Fire ratings are determined by response times and the number of firefighters per district. Right now, Crawford is rated a Class 9, with the entire district rated as a Class 10. Classes 9 and 10 are assigned to rural fire departments that don’t have adequate equipment, quick response times or access to enough fire hydrants.
The average response time to a fire in District 4 is between 20 and 30 minutes, depending on where it is in relation to the nearest fire station.
“The higher a fire rating is, the higher insurance in the area is,” King said. “So our ultimate goal is to get to fires and fight them faster because that will lower our fire rating and allow us to help people and their property faster.”
District 4 Supervisor Jeff Smith told The Dispatch that he plans to pursue other updates to equipment above and beyond just one truck. Most of the equipment at the district’s three fire stations is old — sometimes decades old — and that’s something he wants to address.
“We’re trying to take the district in a new direction,” Smith said. “We’re still trying to recruit new volunteers and give them the best training we can. We’re hoping that can come through upgrading our equipment because that will give volunteers the confidence that they can not only serve the district, but they can protect themselves too.”
Smith said there are as many as a dozen volunteer firefighters currently training to join District 4, but the district is still recruiting. Right now, there are 20 volunteer firefighters; both King and Smith would like to see that double.
“We’re excited about what’s going on with the volunteers,” Smith said. “We’re thankful for the support we have from the community and the volunteers are able to get involved.”
King views the upgrade in equipment as a draw to future volunteers, and hopes that a rise in the number of firefighters the district has will also boost its fire rating, since response time to emergencies also matters.
“I know this district and District 5 both need volunteers,” she said. “Those are the two districts with the lowest ratings. We’d really like to get them up.”
Not only would a lower rating help with insurance rates, but King believes it would attract more businesses and residents to the district, thus boosting the local economy. She hopes the district’s rating can continue to improve, one fire engine and one equipment upgrade at a time.
“It’s a slow climb,” she said. “But we’re getting there. I’m just real excited about that truck. When they put the fire hose on it, even doing that is faster than the old one. I’m telling you, it was so exciting.”
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