Douglas County’s five rural fire protection districts were recognized by the Board of Douglas County Commissioners with vital firefighting funds to help them manage fires, medical emergencies, and rescue operations specifically in the Pike National Forest area, the county announced in a news release.

The fire districts were awarded $100,000 at the Tuesday Board of Douglas County Commissioners Business meeting. The funds are received by the county annually from the federal government as Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT). Similar to many other local governments in the U.S. that have non-taxable federal lands within their boundaries, Douglas County receives PILT funds to help offset losses in local property taxes spent on the utilization of county services on non-taxable federal lands.

Forty-eight percent of Douglas County is open space and just over 140,000 acres of that open space is within the Pike National Forest. PILT funds help rural fire districts protect those lands as they respond to emergency calls in the national forest.

The five fire districts report they will use the money in 2023 to update wildland fire fighting and personal protection equipment.

The PILT funds were distributed to the five agencies based on the number of calls they made during the year, at an average of $735 per call.

Awards were as follows:

• Jackson 105 Fire Protection District: $5,153 (7 calls)
• Larkspur Fire Protection District: $3,683 (5 calls)
• Mountain Communities Volunteer Fire Protection District: $39,698 (54 calls)
• North Fork Fire Protection District: $24,263 (33 calls)
• West Douglas Fire Protection District: $27,203 (37 calls)

Beginning in 2002, Douglas County has designated a portion of its PILT money each year to provide supplemental funding for the five rural fire districts.

Wildfire mitigation and risk reduction require everyone in our community to participate. Learn more about what you can do to prepare for wildfire and reduce your risk and be sure to sign up for CodeRED notifications to ensure you and your family are notified immediately in case of a life-threatening emergency in your community.

Madison Safety & Flow adds provider of portable fire pumps to its fire safety offering

January 26, 2023 — CHICAGO, IL – Madison Industries, one of the world’s largest privately held companies has made a significant investment in WATERAX, a leading manufacturer of lightweight portable fire pumps. WATERAX bolsters Madison’s Safety & Flow offering, making it one of the largest providers of firefighter equipment and rescue tools in the world today.

“WATERAX fits perfectly with the Madison mission; to make the world safer, healthier and more productive,” said Kris Howard, President and CEO of Madison Safety & Flow. “The team that built WATERAX into what it is today are joining our team of over 20,000 entrepreneurs who are building a truly remarkable business. We live in a world where firefighters need lighter, more powerful portable tools to fight remote fires and WATERAX has the world’s leading solution. We are proud of our companies who are equipping firefighters with state-of-the-art tools to be more effective in their jobs.”

WATERAX’s mission is to place powerful, precision engineered lightweight portable pumps into the hands of wildland firefighters to move water to protect our forests and communities from the ravages of wildfires. Roughly 60,000 wildfires burn 8 million acres in the U.S. each year, according to the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC). That number is projected to grow significantly over the next 20 years.

“We’re very excited about this partnership as it will enable WATERAX to launch truly revolutionary technology with a focus on our core elements of the portfolio, our mission-critical portable fire pump platforms”, said Raffaele Gerbasi, President of WATERAX. “We couldn’t be more excited to join the Madison team.”

Read the features and news on fire trucks and fire equipment from the February 2023 issue of Fire Apparatus & Emergency Equipment magazine.

The Spring Hill Board of Mayor and Aldermen examined designs for the proposed Fire Station 4 this week, which staff promises to be a much-needed upgrade to the fire department’s growing needs, ColumbiaDailyHerald.com reported.

The need for a new station has been in the works for many years, beginning around 2018-2019, the report said. The station is expected to open and be fully operational at the corner of Duplex and Buckner roads by November of 2024.

The new 17,023 square-foot station’s proposed design, created by Renaissance Group consulting firm, will keep the traditional fire hall look and feel, but with a whole lot more resources available for staff, as well as office space for Spring Hill Police personnel, the report said. This includes individual dorm rooms for staff, four drive-thru bays, spaces for training and an in-house gym.

Other features include a commercial kitchen, as well as a conference room that doubles as an emergency storm shelter, according to the report.

The project is expected to break ground in October, with a construction cost estimated at $6 million, the report said.