Burke County emergency services outlines restructuring, describes massive Grace Heights evacuation and rising search-and-rescue workload

After a departmental realignment that moved emergency management out of the fire marshal’s office and into Burke County Emergency Services, county Emergency Medical Services Director James Robertson told the Board of Commissioners on July 21 that the change is intended to improve preparedness and response for large incidents. Robertson, introduced as the county’s EMS director, said the July 13 fire and evacuation at Grace Heights Health and Rehabilitation showed the practical benefits of the reorganization and of recent interagency coordination. “We set up unified command,” Robertson said. “Seventy-one patients were moved to the Foothills Higher Education Center … 91 patients were moved in an hour and 53 minutes.”The move places emergency management staff — including an emergency management manager and an emergency management planner — under Emergency Services, Robertson said, shifting responsibilities so the fire marshal’s office can focus on fire inspections and investigations. He said the county now staffs special operations and events-medicine teams and operates a paramedic academy in partnership with Western Piedmont Community College.Robertson said search-and-rescue (SAR) calls have risen sharply this year. He told the board Burke County typically records 100–125 SARs per year but projects about 200 calls for the current year. Robertson attributed part of the increase to more public use of trails after recent storms and to growth in public lands. “At 200 calls, that’s a massive call volume,” he said, and estimated about $202,000 a year in overtime costs tied to the SAR responses, not counting volunteer expenses. He described two multi-hour rescues this year that required helicopter extrication and 18 hours of on-ground work.“We are averaging one search every single day so far for the month of July,” Robertson said, urging hikers to carry the 10 essentials and suggesting many incidents are preventable.Robertson also summarized operational changes: the fire marshal’s office now has four full-time positions focused on code and investigations, while Emergency Services carries the bulk of emergency management staff and now fields a 25-member special operations team that supports mountain, water and helicopter rescues. He described steps taken to increase training and certifications among staff and volunteers, and to offer community outreach such as hands-only CPR training at events.Robertson said the county is installing blue, geotagged trail markers tied to SARtopo mapping to speed location of lost hikers and improve rescue times. “Every one of these blue signs that goes up will be geotagged within that SAR TOPO,” he said, explaining people can report the marker number to give rescuers a GPS location. Commissioners and staff said the marker program and the reorganization helped coordinate the response to the Grace Heights fire. After Robertson’s presentation the board voted to accept the report as presented (motion made by Commissioner Barry; vote recorded 5–0).