Statewide fire department numbers recorded, JCVFD says needs more fire supplies
JONES COUNTY, Miss. - The following is a press release from the Jones County Volunteer Fire Department.
The numbers are officially in for volunteer and career fire departments across the state. Encompassing the entire year of 2016, there were 762 fire departments reporting their incidents to the National Incident Fire Reporting System, which is administered through the Department of Homeland Security; the statistics were compiled by the State Fire Marshal's Office.
For the first time, these numbers have been broken down into specific categories, highlighting every type of call, response rate, and dispatch totals. The call volume ranking system takes into account total requests for service, total response rate and total no-response rate. Of the 762 fire departments' call volume statewide, the Jones County volunteer fire departments ranked as follows (the lower the number, the higher the rank. For instance, number 1 would be the highest among call volume; number 762 would be the lowest):
Glade VFD - 69
Shady Grove VFD - 93
Moselle VFD - 107
Calhoun VFD - 109
Sharon VFD - 118
Powers VFD - 122
M&M VFD - 132
Ovett VFD - 139
South Jones VFD - 146
Southwest Jones VFD - 169
Sandersville VFD - 179
Pleasant Ridge VFD - 214
Johnson VFD - 228
Union VFD - 242
Hebron VFD - 253
Rustin VFD - 265
Soso VFD - 314
Boggy VFD - 344
Given the astonishing number of total departments across the state, the above listed call volume ranking for our Jones County volunteer fire departments is staggering. Furthermore, out of the 762 total fire departments in Mississippi, 698 of them are volunteer, which continues to drive home the urgent need for more willing and dedicated individuals to join a local volunteer fire department. Volunteers are needed everywhere, but as noted in the numbers above and the numbers below, Jones County sees a large portion of call volume compared to other departments across the state, and our need for more volunteers is pressing.
Of the 698 volunteer fire departments call volume statewide, the Jones County volunteer fire departments ranked as follows:
Glade VFD - 8
Shady Grove - 28
Moselle VFD - 43
Calhoun VFD - 45
Sharon VFD - 54
Powers VFD - 58
M&M VFD - 68
Ovett VFD - 75
South Jones VFD - 82
Southwest Jones VFD - 105
Sandersville VFD - 115
Pleasant Ridge VFD - 150
Johnson VFD - 164
Union VFD - 178
Hebron VFD - 189
Rustin VFD - 201
Soso VFD - 250
Boggy VFD - 281
With 6,352 total requests for service in 2016, Jones County volunteer firefighters and Emergency Medical Responders are ranked among some of the highest response rates to incidents. With just over 345 volunteers across the county, our volunteer personnel work hard day in and day out to ensure the safety and well being of the communities that they serve.
As the number of incidents seem to be on the rise, our volunteers are not only limited on manpower to respond to these thousands of calls every year, but also face a difficult road ahead in regards to aging equipment and fire trucks that are in dire need of replacement.
The numbers presented here paint a clear picture that our volunteer fire departments, both locally and across the state, are pivotal resources in ensuring the protection of both lives and property, without which would be disastrous for all.
