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Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services reports steady response times, highlights staffing and SPLOST funding needs
Summary
Chief Randy Wenner presented the 2024 annual report to the Cherokee County Board of Commissioners, noting maintained national accreditation, a $70.3 million FY2024 budget driven by personnel costs, rising call volumes and plans for quick-response vehicles and station investments funded in part by SPLOST.
Chief Randy Wenner presented Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services’ 2024 annual report to the Cherokee County Board of Commissioners on July 1, saying the department has maintained national accreditation and is addressing rising call volumes and budget pressures.
Wenner told the board the department “is very proud of our accreditation status,” noting the department is among 23 internationally and one of 14 in Georgia to reach that level. He said the combined Fire and EMS FY2024 budget was $70,300,000 and that personnel costs made up roughly 82 percent of that total.
The report framed several operational pressures: a growing call volume that outpaces population growth, nearly 17,000 ambulance transports in 2024 and average response time of 6 minutes, 39 seconds while the 90th-percentile response time has been increasing. “Our response times are creeping up,” Wenner…
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