KEOWEE FIRE COMMISSION Commissioners
115 Maintenance Road Doug Carlson
Salem SC 29676 Don Chamberlain 864-944-8666 Larry Gabe
www.keoweefire.com Karen Graves
Jim Henderson
July 2014 through June 2015 Keowee Fire District Summary
Fire Department:
The Keowee Fire Department celebrated its 20th reunion having been formed in April 1995 by Oconee County with the support of Keowee Key. There have been many changes since the early days including funding through creation of a Special Tax District. The Department continues to mature as a well-managed, efficient and responsive program to benefit the welfare of the residents within the District. The Commission recognizes and appreciates the skill and hard work of Chief Richie Caudill, Asst. Chief Brandon Shirley and the officers, staff and volunteers of Keowee Fire District 17 for their contributions in creating another successful year.
The experience and skill of the staff is positively demonstrated daily by the examples of aid and support they provide not only to the folks in our District but to adjacent districts as well as the County. Fire Chief Caudill and Asst. Chief Shirley have a combined 50 years of experience and the 3 Captains, Dave Mansfield, Denny Caldwell and Will Merritt, have more than 70 years experience in the field of firefighting service. The Department has 16 part-time staff averaging 13 years experience and 18 volunteers with continuing training and experience. Jena Blakesly and Dan French received Volunteer Firefighters of the year and each spend 100’s of hours per year with the station.
One additional part time staff position with Emergency Medical Responder experience (EMR or greater) was added this past year at night and on the weekends as a test. This additional certified firefighter aided greatly in the ability to cover fire and medical calls and if necessary, cover more than one call at a time. This provides a minimum of 2 and most often 3 staff immediately available at the station 24/7 but still have staff available on call should it be required. We also have 2 firemen living at the substation and when available, they cover the south end of the District and Duke Energy. Having adequate staff to meet the emergency calls within the District proved a wise choice in how funds were allocated but it does stress the budget when it comes to adding new equipment.
Added staff, increased training and added rescue, ladder and other fire vehicles has allowed the Department to improve its ISO rating from a 4 to a 3/3X for the entire District. Less than 10% of all Fire Departments have obtained this rating and while it may not improve residential insurance rates, it does help some commercial properties. Most important is that this exceptional rating for a small department indicates that the Department continues to aggressively improve its operation.
The Fire Department is overseen by a Commission of five elected residents of the District. They are responsible for overseeing the finances of the District necessary to effectively and efficiently run the Department and provide the community with an excellent and comprehensive fire service. The Commission will miss the great efforts and service by Steve Lefevre and Larry Wingard. Their interest and dedication has been exemplary and they will be missed. Holdover Commission members Doug Carlson and Don Chamberlain have been joined by newly elected Commissioners Larry Gabe, Karen Graves and Jim Henderson.
Results:
· The Department ran 482 calls this fiscal year which included 121 fire, 198 EMS (medical) and 96 public service calls. There were 6 structure fires which included 3 major home fires within the District. Other calls included 5 brush fires, 30 vehicle accidents, 3 managed landing zones for medical emergencies, 5 tree and 4 power line downed episodes, 2 gas leaks, 2 smoke scares, 1 fuel spill and one lake rescue within the District. There were 57 serious mutual aid calls to assist adjacent fire districts. The total number of calls represents a decrease over the previous year but little change in the serious nature of the calls received.
· The Department provides 100% response to all 911 dispatched calls for medical assistance and emergencies within the District All staff members are qualified Emergency Medical Responders (EMR) with many either in training or qualified with EMT or Paramedic certification. The Department is in the process of applying for a DHEC license which will allow EMT and paramedic certified firemen to work directly with the hospital to perform additional emergency care tasks when responding to a medical call.
· The Department continues to meet the requirements of annual testing and detailed documentation of air packs, ladders, hoses and hydrants. The firefighters participated in 4,777 hours of training this past year, including on-site training programs by Gaston College, interior burn team training, and Emergency Medical Responder and refresher courses for all staff and volunteers.
· The Department maintains a small pontoon fire/rescue boat (Marine 17) available for a variety of emergencies on the lake and has a new dock at Mosquito Point near the Lighthouse Restaurant. Since 34% of properties within the District are on the lake, having a fireboat presence is helpful for lake-front fires. KFD submitted a FEMA grant for a true dedicated fire/rescue boat this year but the grant was rejected due to limited federal budget. Donation of a larger boat which can be converted or funds to obtain a fireboat would benefit the Department’s ability to improve firefighting is desired since the budget will not permit such an acquisition. The dive program with 9 certified divers trained for rescue and recovery in boating and swimming accidents is part of the County Dive Program.
· The Department has developed a close working relationship with the Oconee Nuclear Station in case our services are needed. We train, support and participate in Duke emergency activities and federally controlled tests.
· The Department continues to sell fire extinguishers, lock boxes for the front door and provide free home pre-fire plans and Firewise suggestions to help protect ones’ property. Each officer has an IPAD that contains all pre-fire plans (includes the layout of homes and location of bedrooms), hydrant locations and other key information that can be referenced before arriving at any property in the District for which a fire plan has been prepared. The IPAD also upgrades the knowledge base with a series of applications that may be needed for specific types of fires and accidents.
Funding:
The property owners in the District continue to pay 14.5 mils to maintain the Keowee Special Fire Tax District. The District’s special tax funds pay for the majority of needed equipment and apparatus and most importantly, the full and part time staff to meet the daily needs of the District. Over 68% of the budget is related to staffing. There is still 7 years left on our bond which was used to build and equip the HQ and Substation and represents 13% of our budget.
In spite of rising operating costs, the Department will finish the year under budget. District 17 continues to control all expenditures to mirror general budget tightening in state and local governments and businesses across the country. A capital replacement account is currently being funded to replace District owned vehicles and equipment when required but is being limited by the need to provide additional trained firefighters. The Department monitors the status of equipment and the needs of the Department to service the District properly now and in the future. A replacement plan is utilized to determine anticipated wear and tear on major equipment and the replacement funding required.
The annual 2013-2014 financial audit by the accounting firm Byerley, Paine and White was complimentary of our procedures, did not detect any problems and is available for inspection at Headquarters.
Firewise:
Keowee Key, Keowee Harbors, Wynward Pointe, Waterford Point and Waterford have active Firewise programs and are recognized as official Firewise Communities by the National Forestry Service. The National and SC Forestry Services continue to support our Firewise activities through donations, grants and educational programs. The program has been a great success and our story has been applauded in local and national articles. The Keowee Fire District continues to support the activities of the individual communities and is now implementing a new program, Ready, Set, Go. The goal is to educate residents living in wooded areas on how to prepare for rapid exit should fire occur. Each community conducts at least two 'Wildfire Mitigation Projects' each year with the result being a reduction in combustible materials on both private and communal properties within the communities. These fire prevention programs are extremely important in our wooded environment and are being supported by many community volunteers.
Conclusion:
It is important to recognize the dedication of the staff and volunteers that provide an optimum response to all calls and requests. Chief Caudill has created an atmosphere that results in a cohesive and enjoyable environment that attracts an enthusiastic group of firefighters that continue to train, learn new skills, and improve their fire fighting capability through the activities of the Department. Throughout the United States, volunteer participation is decreasing and this District is no exception. The demographic of older and retired residents limits the number of potential volunteers thus the Department continues to develop some creative ways to encourage additional volunteer firefighters.
The Department with the leadership of Asst. Chief Brandon Shirley continues to participate in the planned 9/11 Twin Towers Memorial adjacent to the new Walhalla High School on Route 11. Additional activities included Honoring Their Service project, Marine Corps Toys for Tots, Salem food drive, animal shelter support, the 17th District Amateur Radio Emergency Radio field day event and more.
The Commission encourages you to visit the Keowee Fire Station, meet the staff, attend our monthly meetings, review our documents and, most importantly, consider being a volunteer firefighter or helper at the station. To learn more about recent happenings, check out our website at www.keoweefire.com. Remember, if you have an emergency, call 911.
Submitted by the Keowee Fire Commission
Doug Carlson
Don Chamberlain
Larry Gabe
Karen Graves
Jim Henderson