Highlands Fire and Rescue asks for service-fee hike to add daytime coverage and replace aging engines
Chief Ryan Gearhart requested a 2¢ per $100 service-fee increase to add 0.333 firefighter per shift, address a rising call volume (946 calls in 2025) with overlapping incidents, and begin replacing frontline engines that are past NFPA recommended service life.
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Ryan Gearhart, chief of Highlands Fire and Rescue, told commissioners the district had 946 calls for service in 2025 and that overlapping calls accounted for roughly 16% of those incidents — a pattern that, he said, requires additional paid staffing to ensure daytime coverage and timely apparatus deployment.
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