Fire or wreck: Who you gonna call?

Sandra ClarkOur Town Heroes

(Updated to clarify that Karns FD is a non-profit)

Fire protection and first responder emergency services inside the city of Knoxville are covered by the Knoxville Fire Department. Its annual operating budget is almost $44 million; its service area is pink on the map above.

Similar services in the town of Farragut and other communities outside the Knoxville city limits are covered by three providers: Rural Metro Fire and Karns Fire – both subscription-based departments – and Seymour Volunteer Fire Department. In addition, Knox County Rescue (formerly known as the Rescue Squad) serves the county balance with specialized rescue equipment and trained volunteers.

Knox County government contributed $675,000 in FY 2021 to three agencies: Knox Rescue, $425,000; Seymour, $125,000; and Karns, $125,000. There was no contribution to Rural Metro.

Knox County Commission created what we’ll call the Fire Committee on March 6, 2020. Mayor Glenn Jacobs asked members to look at emergency service providers and bring recommendations for the FY 21 budget. Covid disruptions limited work during 2020, and the agencies got continuation funding. The committee’s main recommendation was that it be expanded from six to 11 members. And it produced this report: Fire and Technical Rescue Committee Report 12.15.20

So, what will the expanded committee recommend? Is there a consolidated, tax-funded county fire department in our future?

Dwight Van de Vate

We caught up with Dwight Van de Vate last week. He chairs the Fire Committee and also serves as chief operating officer for Jacobs.

Van de Vate tiptoes backwards from the words “county fire department.” He says the committee is exploring delivery models and “the landscape is evolving.” The expanded committee includes the chiefs of each fire department along with Larry Hutsell, emergency response coordinator for the Knox County Health Department.

Van de Vate said the county does not fund Global Medical Response (GMR), the county’s contracted ambulance provider, and the committee is primarily discussing fire service.

He said the county’s former fire safety officer, Wayne Waggoner, would say this committee should have happened 25 years ago. And Carson Dailey, the county commission’s representative on the Fire Committee, would say it will be in place 30 years from now.

Getting the chiefs together, talking is a good first step. While Rural Metro has successfully expanded through mergers with smaller volunteer fire departments, like Heiskell, it never merged with Karns. And now Karns has a branch in fast-growing Hardin Valley and serves a population of almost 40,000 people.

Where is this heading?

We can expect more efficient service and more county funding over time. Perhaps Knox County will build firehalls and save the providers those capital costs. Maybe a first step would be a consolidated training facility for fire and rescue. Maybe we’ll see more staff overlap – working for Rural Metro while volunteering for Knox Rescue, for example. John Whited already does this although we’re not quite sure when he sleeps.

Are citizens best served by government employees, private employees or volunteers?

Van de Vate stressed that the committee is advisory only. The mayor and commission will make any final decision on increasing the county’s involvement. “We are early in this discussion, but any discussion at all is a pretty seismic shift”

Sandra Clark is editor/CEO of Knox TN Today.

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