Lee County Looking At Ways To Recruit And Retain Volunteer Firefighters

TUPELO, Miss. (WCBI) – Lee County is looking at ways to recruit and retain more volunteer firefighters.

Lee County Fire Coordinator Marc Flanagan updated supervisors on the need for volunteer firefighters during the board’s regular meeting.

Flanagan said it is tough to attract people to fill positions at various volunteer fire departments throughout the county.

He says an increase in calls, including assisting with medical emergencies, has put a strain on the departments.

Flanagan points out that the volunteer fire departments impact everyone.

“Our insurance premiums are directly related to the fire districts we have, numbers on those fire departments, they’re response times, lower our fire rating can be, lower our insurance premiums will be for those districts,” Flanagan said.

Flanagan hopes to meet soon with chiefs from the volunteer fire departments, to get their input on how to boost their numbers.