Because fire doubles in size every minute, Walker County officials were pleased to announce the reopening of the Fairview Fire Station, shortening response times for firefighters in the north end of the county.
Station 7 was previously a volunteer station, but was not being served by any volunteers. Station 7 became Walker County’s seventh fire station to be staffed 24/7/365 by full-time firefighters.
“We have had a need for an additional fire station in northern Walker County for a long time,” Shannon Whitfield, then Walker County’s sole commissioner, said when announcing the plans in April 2020. “Adding career firefighters at the Fairview station will help improve response times while addressing an increased demand for services in our most populated communities.”
Last summer Walker County Fire Rescue held a recruitment class to train 11 new firefighters to staff Station 7. They graduated Aug. 15 and worked the next week to prepare Station 7 for service on Aug. 20.
“The staffing of Station 7 is a positive step forward toward maintaining the county’s ISO Public Protection Classification of a 3/3Y, which helps residents and businesses secure low insurance premiums,” Fire Chief Blake Hodge said in April 2020. “Along with improving response times in northern Walker County, this creates the potential for automatic aid agreements with the city of Rossville and Catoosa County, since Station 7 is close to both areas.”
The Fairview station would also receive a Quick Response Vehicle (QRV) to respond to medical calls.
Walker County realigned public safety resources in 2017 to enhance services in Flintstone, Villanow, Cane Creek and Kensington. The county also maintains 11 volunteer fire stations.
This article originally ran on northwestgeorgianews.com.
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