blah blah blah - it all means nothing - taxes will go up - thousands
of homes will burn - thousands will die from drug ODs and heart
attacks - nothing will improve - there is zero rationality behind any
of this
show me 1 single study that shows that a larger FD budget will save a
single life or a single building
it should be obvious - but it probably is not - in fact - maybe a
larger FD budget makes people more careless - and the deaths and
losses actually skyrocket when the FD budget goes up
==============================
Brunswick County proposes 14-minute fire response time standard
Brunswick County leaders are proposing new response time standards for
all county fire departments.
By Delaney Tarpley
Updated: 14 hours ago
BRUNSWICK COUNTY, N.C. (WECT) - Brunswick County leaders are proposing
new response time standards for all county fire departments, requiring
crews to arrive on scene within 14 minutes on 80 percent of their
calls.
County Manager Steve Stone presented the first draft of an updated
fire agreement in January. He said the response time was modeled after
a national standard for volunteer rural fire departments. The proposal
comes as the county continues to grow and fire departments face
increasing demand.
Stone said some fire chiefs have raised objections to the 14-minute
requirement. Volunteer departments cite limited paid staff and traffic
issues as factors that could make the standard difficult to meet.
"Some of the departments don't have any paid staff," Stone said. "And
so if nobody's at the station and a call comes in, somebody has to get
to the station, get into turn-out gear, crank up the equipment, and
drive to the site.
Under the proposed agreement, any department that repeatedly fails to
meet the standard could lose county funding. Many volunteer
departments rely primarily on county funding to operate.
Sunset Beach Fire Chief Richard Childres said the standard is
achievable for his department but acknowledged the challenge for
others.
"It's achievable. We can reach everyone well within that 14-minute
response. So for Sunset Beach, yes, it is. But for others, it might be
more difficult," Childres said.
Childres said losing county funding could have severe consequences for
some departments.
"100% we rely on that... probably it'll be detrimental," Childres said.
Stone said the intent of the new standards is not to defund
departments that struggle to comply, but instead to work with
departments that are struggling to meet the standard.
"Our intent is to improve the quality of the overall fire service in
the county. We're becoming more and more suburban, and it's important
that we help the fire departments step up to the next level," Stone
said. "We would try to have a collaborative effort to help any
department that didn't meet the standards."
Stone also said he is considering a grace period of up to one year for
departments to adjust to the new requirements.
Stone plans to meet with fire chiefs for a negotiating session next
Wednesday. While he said he does not want to change the 14-minute
response time, he is seeking an agreement that works for fire chiefs,
county staff, and residents.
"I think we have a spirit of cooperation here to make it work, and
we'll do what it takes to get everybody on board," Stone said.
The county hopes to have a finalized agreement in place by July 1.
You can view the full first draft of the proposed agreement here.
Copyright 2026 WECT. All rights reserved.
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