BAKER COUNTY, Fla. — It has been a difficult few months for the Baker County Fire Department as they responded to two devastating fires. A total of five people were killed in those fires, including children. Assistant Fire Chief Donald Blanton said those fires were hard on his team. They are also highlighting the challenges the fire department faces.
Blanton said his team has been busier than ever since he took over the position a couple years ago. He has been helping the department navigate the difficulties of a growing county without growing resources.
Blanton said the fire department operates with nine people a day and they cover more than 500 square miles. He said there has been a 10 to 15 percent increase in calls for service over the last year, and that sometimes means there is no one to send on a call right away.
"In the last 24 hours, we had four calls happen in a 20 minute window, and one of them was a very serious call where there was multiple victims in a car accident. Someone had to be actually flown by helicopter out of the county, and there was nobody left to even go meet the helicopter with the patients," Blanton explained.
Blanton said the distance crews have to travel adds to the challenges. About two-thirds of the calls are anywhere from 10 to 16 miles away. He said he knows these challenges are not unique to other rural communities, but they are still difficult to process. Last year, the fire department did a 15 month survey of their numbers.
"We had just under 1,000 times when we only had one truck in the entire county. And we had just under 500 times when we had no trucks in the entire county. That's what we call status zero, that means nobody's coming. And that's a tough spot to be in that many times in the course of a little over a year," Blanton said.
Blanton said the department needs more personnel, but that will require more money to hire people. They were recently given the greenlight to hire a consultant who will spend the next few weeks working with the department to determine which areas need the most help. While Blanton recognizes every county department could use more funds, he is hopeful they can work together county leaders to secure these extra resources.
"When somebody dials that number and they have a legitimate emergency, and that's their kid, their mom, their child, whatever, you don't want to know in your mind the whole time you're driving there, 'I hope our truck frees up,'" Blanton said.