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Crockett leaders discuss fire department staffing after double structure fires; police and fire report July activity
Summary
Following two near‑simultaneous structure fires, fire and police chiefs updated the council: the fire department responded with limited volunteers, one officer helped rescue an elderly resident, and police reported 450 calls for service in July; council discussed the costs to hire paid firefighters and the shrinking volunteer pool.
Council members heard updates from public‑safety chiefs after two structure fires occurred within minutes of each other.
Fire Chief reported 39 calls in July (27 in the city) and described two simultaneous structure fires in which occupants self‑evacuated a burning home; the chief credited Crockett Police officers and mutual‑aid departments for rapid assistance and singled out Crockett Officer Blake Dickey by name for helping rescue a blind elderly resident and for assisting with fire suppression efforts. "I wanna commend the Crockett Police Department because they showed up pretty quick... I wanna commend Crockett Officer, Blake Dickey for doing that," the chief said.
Police Chief provided July statistics: the department had 15 officers who logged 2,795 hours, responded to 450 calls for service, handled five traffic accidents, made 47 arrests, issued 254 traffic citations and completed 76 case reports.
A public commenter whose family was affected urged the council to "get some paid department" and demanded more staffing. Council and the mayor discussed volunteerism decline and the cost to hire full‑time firefighters; one councilmember said the first year cost for a hired firefighter could run roughly $100,000 when factoring recruitment, benefits and equipment.
Council members said they are looking at options and budget adjustments to address volunteer shortfalls and public safety needs; staff noted current revenue constraints and that hiring paid personnel would require budget increases.
