BY KARISSA MILLER
The Iredell County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved new fire coverage plans for the Wayside Volunteer Fire District.
During the pre-agenda briefing, Fire Services and Emergency Management Director Kent Greene explained to the board that Wayside Volunteer Fire Department has failed multiple fire inspections.
“We did not want to be in this situation with finding an alternative way to deliver services. It’s not been fun working through that process from staff’s perspective either,” Greene said.
The primary plan calls for Shepherds Fire-Rescue to absorb Wayside facilities, staff and equipment.
“In some discussions, there are some concerns that if certain (Wayside) employees don’t continue their employment that other employees will not continue to serve that area as part of Shepherds,” Greene explained.
Effectively, he continued, the county has to be prepared for a potential Plan B.
“We are setting up a meeting to meet with Shepherd’s chief and board chair to meet with part-time staff at Wayside, and that’s when we will get a clear picture of whether this will move forward or not,” Greene said.
Shepherds Chief Kelly Robinson is ready to move forward, but his board chair is less eager because of some unknowns, he added.
Plan B options include:
♦ Piloting a firefighter/EMT program; and
♦ Staffing the Wayside district with county EMTs/firefighters
According to County Manager Beth Milton, the county is initiating a pilot program with Lake Norman Fire Department utilizing firefighter/EMTs who are a part of their EMS employees. They are stationed at the the fire department and run fire calls.
If the Shepherds board decides not to absorb Wayside or the staffing proves to be inadequate, the county would supplement staffing in the district with an Iredell County firefighter/EMT position.
“We’ve done all the legwork and are really ready to go with that program,” Milton said. “What we are proposing is a Plan B and to do the same type of pilot program at Wayside.”
The county manager explained that this plan would result in two individuals be in the station 24/7. Shepherds would provide additional personnel to ensure minimum staffing requirements are met.
“We are waiting to hear back from Shepherds to make sure that we can cover that district,” Milton said.
The county is trying to fill a void created when the Wayside Volunteer Fire Department failed to meet its contractual obligations to provide adequate staffing for all calls in the district. County funding for the department will end on October 31.
“We are having to do this to protect the people who live in Wayside. This was not of our making or something that we wanted to do,” said County Commissioner Brad Stroud.
“Wayside wasn’t answering all of their (response) calls in their district. If the county didn’t provide that service, the citizens’ fire rates would go up on their homeowner’s insurance,” Commissioner Gene Houpe added.
“We appreciate all the emergency service workers for what they do. All of them have been working with us to make sure that we get this coverage done,” he said.
The board will contract with a consultant to a study and recommend options for improving fire protection across the county.