INSURANCE SERVICES OFFICE
Emergency Management Director and Jones County Fire Chief Don Graham met with county commissioners during a work session to discuss ways of improving the county’s ISO rating.
The June 20 work session was called to order by Board Chairman Chris Weidner. All commissioners were in attendance with the exception of Wendy Vaughn.
Graham began the meeting by starting where the ISO conversation ended at the June 6 board meeting. The county’s ISO (Insurance Services Office) rating is currently a 5. The county had an 8 ranking when Graham became EMA director in 2009, and three years later the ranking improved to 5.
Graham explained that all fire departments are graded alike by the ISO.
“It doesn’t matter if you are an all-volunteer department or have full-time firefighters,” he said.
He said in the rating process, it takes three volunteer firefighters to equal one full-time person. He said four full-time people are required for each fire truck that responds to a fire call.
The chief said he met with Rebecca Mitchell at the Jones County Sheriff’s Office after the last meeting to talk about 911. He said the fire calls have protocols, and the times are a lot quicker than they used to be.
Graham said 911 EMD dispatching is for medical emergencies only, and the dispatcher remains on the call until help arrives. He also noted that 911 calls can be transferred to the medical center at any time.
The chief said he now wanted to look forward to determine how the department can get better.
Commissioner John Wood, who is also a volunteer firefighter, said water is the biggest concern.
“You must have a continuous flow of water when fire hydrants are not available,” he said.
Graham said, when the nine full-time firefighters approved by the commissioners are hired, it will make a big difference.
Wood noted that the Gray Fire Department received a higher ISO rating than the county for the dispatch portion of its rating. Graham said he believed that was because the Jones County Sheriff’s Office had its new CAD system in place during the GFD rating. He said the new communication system would make a difference in future ratings.
Commissioner Daylon Martin said the county needs to make a big push for more volunteer firefighters, and Weider said he was not sure how to recruit more volunteers.
Wood added that the retention of current volunteers was just as important.
Graham said the department just picked up three new volunteer firefighters, and two of them were from the Jones County High School JROTC program.
Martin asked about the training of inmates, and the chief said that was a state program.
Commissioner Sam Kitchens asked if the county had recruitment fairs, and Graham said recruitment is done at each fire station when dinners are held.
Wood said community education is needed.
“If you ask most people in Jones County if we have a fulltime fire department, they would say yes,” he said.
Weidner suggested promoting the volunteer program on social media.
