425 Unanswered Calls in 2024

The Brown County Volunteer Fire Department responds to fires, vehicle crashes, emergency medical calls, and a variety of other calls. Covering 102 square miles, thousands of full-time residents, and millions of visitors every year is a lot for a just handful of volunteers. All of our volunteers only respond when called and all of them have other jobs and responsibilities that prevent them from responding.

Being a 100% volunteer fire department, we cannot guarantee a response. All of our volunteers have jobs and responsibilities that prevent them from responding at certain times, especially during weekday work hours. On top of that, being a firefighter, even a volunteer, requires hundreds of hours of training and continuing education every year. The time required and stress involved leads many volunteers to quit within 3 years of joining. 

The only way to guarantee a response from the fire department is to have 24/7 paid staff. Without that, there will always be some calls that go unanswered. Talk to your elected representatives and let them know that paid staff is needed at the fire department. Having a paid staff means firefighters will always respond when called, response times will be significantly shorter, firefighters will be better trained and prepared for any emergency, and insurance rates for residents and businesses will decrease significantly.

If you want to help some of those calls get answered, apply to be a volunteer!