FREDERICKTOWN – The Fredericktown Community Fire District’s Board of Trustees approved the hiring of two paid, daytime firefighters during its meeting Wednesday night.
Jeremy Moss and Kevin Suain, both lieutenants within the district, were hired from a list of three candidates. They will be paid $14 per hour and work 37 hours per week, as the board agreed to the terms of their employment at its June meeting.
The fire board debated the issue of hiring paid firefighters for over a year before voting 4-2 in favor of the idea on June 13. The district was comprised solely of volunteer firefighters, but recent years have seen a decline in the number of volunteers and the availability of firefighters during the daytime hours. The amount of runs per year has increased steadily as well, as the district went on 259 runs in 2017.
After a year of learning and occasionally heated debate over the matter, fire chief Scott Mast felt relieved Wednesday night to finally have the issue come to a close.
“(It’s a) big, big relief,” Mast said. “We’ve pretty much given this our almost undivided attention for the last several years, just trying to make sure we’re doing the right thing, doing it the right way. We really wanted to have all the bases covered and get out there and talk to people and try to educate the best we can, and we spent a lot of time and a lot of effort doing that.
“Now we can look at the big picture and start moving forward.”
Mast believes that adding two paid, daytime firefighters will immediately improve the department’s ability to serve the community.
“(It’s) very huge for the department and for the community, and that’s what it’s all about, is the community,” Mast said. “The fact that we have a lot of more adequate coverage during the day gives me a better sense of security, knowing things will get handled in a more timely manner than they have been in the past. The fact that we can get feet on the ground, eyes on the scene a lot quicker during the day is huge – what an asset for our community.”
Jason Bostic, Fire District Public Information Officer, dug through old newspaper clippings and library archives to discover that this was the first time since the early 1900s that Fredericktown has hired paid firefighters.
“This will revolutionize how we do things,” Bostic said.
Mast said that the Fredericktown Community Fire District was the last fire department in Knox County without paid firefighters before Wednesday. The district now houses 26 volunteer firefighters and two paid firefighters.
The question of whether or not hiring paid firefighters would cause volunteers to leave the district due to discontent arose during the debate over the issue. Mast seemed relieved on Wednesday that after a tumultuous year, no volunteers had left.
“That’s a great feeling so far. You know, you hear other departments across the nation losing people when something like this takes place, and at this point I don’t foresee that,” Mast said. “I think we’ve done this very openly, we’ve done it with the involvement of our membership to the best we can. So I think that helps, when your department buys into what you’re doing and you’re very transparent about everything, I think that leads into a comfort level with them.”
Mast described Moss and Suain as responsible firefighters and hard workers, serving as leaders within the district. He noted their leadership in the district’s cadet program and how they seem to get involved in a wide array of department events.
“If something’s going on, they’re typically here. It’s a great fit, they have a great attitude,” Mast said. “I think they’re in the same mindset as me as far as my goals for daytime staffing and what it can accomplish, so it should be a pretty seamless transition into this, I believe. With my notion and what their expectations are, I think it’s going to fit nicely.”
Moss and Suain will begin as daytime staffers on Thursday.
