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Resident urges action on volunteer fire staffing crisis, offers recruitment incentives
Summary
A resident told commissioners volunteers are scarce and described a recent single‑responder house fire; he urged the county to adopt length‑of‑service awards and property‑tax incentives costing roughly $50,000 annually to retain and recruit volunteer firefighters.
During public comment, Jay Valdoff of 449 Lakeshore Road told the commission that volunteer fire departments across Sullivan County are understaffed and described a recent house fire where only the fire chief initially responded. "Our fire chief took the truck and responded. Unfortunately, he was the only one responding to the fire who had the truck," Valdoff said, calling the situation "really, really close" to a fatal outcome if staffing gaps continue.
Valdoff proposed two possible solutions: a length‑of‑service award program similar to a retirement benefit already available in Tennessee (he estimated the county cost at under $50,000 per year) and a property‑tax reduction for volunteer firefighters (he estimated the revenue impact at about $50,000). He asked the commission for assistance drafting two resolutions and said he had asked Commissioner Joyce Crosswhite to help but had run into resistance related to the county’s tight budget.
Commissioners replied with procedural guidance and asked Valdoff to coordinate with the county’s fire association and its president to formalize recommendations before the board considers formal resolutions.
