Lexington County is adding 50 firefighters over the next five years, an investment that should improve fire response times and pay off in lower residential and commercial insurance bills.
County Council agreed last week to increase the ranks of full-time firefighters by nearly a third. Plans call for 215 full-time firefighters by 2016, supplemented by more than 200 volunteers now on call as fires occur.
The new firefighters will be paid for by selling excess vehicles, not a tax increase, officials say. The 50-firefighter addition is estimated to cost an extra $2.5 million annually in salaries, benefits and gear.
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The plan will mean at least two, and as many as four, firefighters round-the-clock at each of the 24 stations covering most of the 720-square-mile county. Batesburg-Leesville, Cayce, Irmo and West Columbia each have separate forces.
Adding the hires, beginning this spring, is “a very good start as far as getting adequate staffing,” county public safety director David Kerr said.
But reliance on volunteers will continue “for a long, long time.” fire chief Brad Cox said.
Adding more firefighters is part of Cox’s goal of quicker response to building fires — there are about 400 a year. He plans to put performance measures in place, with a goal of meeting the following national standards by 2020:
• Sending 15 firefighters to urban building fires within nine minutes on 90 percent of calls.
• Sending 10 firefighters to suburban building fires within 10 minutes on 90 percent of calls.
• Sending six firefighters to rural building fires within 14 minutes on 80 percent of calls.
• Starting to put out all fires within 2 minutes of arrival on 90 percent of calls.
• Confining fires to room of origin for 75 percent of calls.
• Beginning response within a minute on 90 percent of calls.
Cox intends to cut the number of vehicles from 102 to 91, focusing on elimination of what he considers excess pumpers and tankers while extending replacement time for others.
“We are in better than adequate shape” with equipment, he told the nine council members. Faster response times should improve ratings by the Insurance Services Office, an industry adviser whose recommendations are influential in setting bills for homeowners and businesses.
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