MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — The chairman of the Berkeley County Fire Board hates the idea of using paid firefighters in the county’s five volunteer fire stations, but Hunter Wilson believes there is little choice.
“This is not to turn volunteer stations into paid stations,” Wilson told MetroNews. “I would be just as happy if the volunteers could get out the door, but in today’s world people work one and two jobs, it’s just hard on my guys and my volunteers.”
The proposal was made to the Berkeley County Council this week to create a fire fee structure to help pay for the proposed conversion. The request is for approximately 61 paid firemen who would man the five stations in the county 24/7. The cost would be around $4.2 million annually.
Wilson said this is not an effort to do away with volunteer firefighters in the county.
“By putting paid staff in the station, how they do it I don’t know, but it’s meant to help,” he explained. “We still need the volunteers.”
Wilson bristled at the notion of doing away with the five volunteer departments and making them fully paid staff.
“I’ll support my volunteers come hell or high water, they’re the most important thing in the world to me,” he said. “But when I can’t get the right number of volunteers out the door and put my volunteers at risk, then it’s time to do something else.”
The five volunteer fire departments in Berkeley County include Beddington, Hedgesville, Back Creek Valley, Baker Heights, and South Berkeley. Those five departments have seen an explosion in the number of calls since 2001. According to statistics from the fire board, those five departments in 2001 handled 2,103 calls. In 2017, those same departments handled 4,876 calls. The 231 percent increase is a reflection of the increased population growth in the county which is putting a serious strain on the volunteer departments.
The county council will hold two open meetings on June 28 for public comment and is expected to vote at its July 5 meeting.