Alerts
By: Sutton StokesMarch 18, 2021

Fire Department to Add Two Firefighters

Elkins, W. Va., March 18, 2021: The Elkins Fire Department will soon be able to assign three professional firefighters to each shift, increasing personnel safety and speeding response times. At last night’s meeting, city council approved adding two paid positions to the department, bringing its total staffing level from seven to nine full-time civil-service firefighters.

“This is your fire fee at work,” said EFD Chief Tom Meader. “EFD is totally funded by the fire-protection service fee charged to everyone the department serves, both inside city limits and in our first-due area outside the city. Without that revenue stream, we’d never have been able to grow like this.”

With only seven firefighters currently on staff, there are sometimes just two working a given shift, which Meader says is not ideal.

“Depending on the nature of the call, two firefighters is not always a safe minimum, so there are times right now when we have to wait for a volunteer to arrive before rolling out from the station,” he explained.

Once the two new positions are filled, EFD—which responds to an average of around 650 calls a year—will be able to assign three firefighters per shift, enabling the department to respond even faster when help is needed.

“With three on a shift,” said Meader, “we will be able to roll out within two or three minutes of being dispatched.”

The two vacancies created by last night’s council action will be filled from the department’s existing civil-service list, which was updated in the fall of 2020.

“We’ll be going down the civil-service list in order and putting candidates through our standard pre-hiring evaluations,” said Meader. “We look forward to welcoming two new firefighters into the department by about mid-April.”

##

Categories:

Fire Department
Article, Fire Department, Press Release

Owen Haddix Joins the Elkins Fire Department

Elkins W. Va., July 17, 2024: The City of Elkins is proud to announce the swearing-in of Owen Haddix as a Probationary Firefighter with the Elkins Fire Department. The ceremony took place on Tuesday, July 16, 2024, at Elkins City Hall, marking […]

Read More
Article, Fire Department, Press Release

Captain Ron Corcoran Celebrates Retirement from the City of Elkins

Elkins W. Va., May 30, 2024: The Elkins Fire Department recently hosted a celebration to honor Captain Ronald Corcoran on his retirement after 34 1/2 years of dedicated service to the City of Elkins. The event, held at the Elkins Fire Department, […]

Read More
Fire Department, Press Release

EFD Installing Free Residential Smoke Alarms

Fires can be deadly—especially in homes that don’t have working smoke alarms. Seven times a day, someone in the United States dies in a home fire. About three out of five of these deaths occur in homes lacking smoke alarms, where residents […]

Read More
Fire Department, Press Release

EFD Receives Elevator Training

Elevators are a great convenience–until they stop working, whether due to mechanical problems or as a result of a larger emergency. Elkins Fire Department and Randolph County Department of Homeland Security personnel spent Saturday getting up to speed on the special challenges […]

Read More
Fire Department, Press Release

Elkins Allows Year-Round Outdoor Burning

Outdoor fires to dispose of natural materials are now allowed throughout the year on certain days of the week under a new law adopted by Elkins Common Council last month. The law, which only applies inside Elkins city limits, eliminates the use […]

Read More
Fire Department, Press Release

EFD Chief Retiring After 40-year Career

Elkins, W. Va., April 21, 2021: Elkins Fire Department Chief Tom Meader announced his retirement at last night’s special council meeting after more than 40 years of volunteer and paid service at EFD. His retirement is effective April 30. Captain Steven Himes […]

Read More
Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Stay up to date with the latest news and alerts by signing up for our newsletter!

You have Successfully Subscribed!