Robbinsville – Graham County Fire Department received solid ratings from the N.C. Response Rating System, which released its findings last week after conducting evaluations in the late spring.
The Robbinsville Fire Department – which is part of the Graham County Fire Department – received a rating of 5, with 1 being the best and 10 meaning uncertified. Remaining Graham County fire stations in Lake Santeetlah, Snowbird and Meadow Branch received a combined rating of 5/9E. The ratings are effective Nov. 1 of this year. Stecoah Valley Fire & Rescue is its own standalone department.
“I’d like to congratulate Chief (Keith) Eller for the department’s performance and for the hard work of all the department members,” N.C. Insurance Commissioner and State Fire Marshal Mike Causey said in a news release. “The citizens in the these fire districts should rest easy knowing they have a fine group of firefighters protecting them and their property in case of an emergency.”
Causey announced the results of the routine inspection and ratings on July 27. The inspection, conducted by officials with the Department of Insurance Office of State Fire Marshal, is required on a regular basis as part of the response rating system.
State law requires fire-marshal officials to inspect departments serving districts of 100,000 people or less, which makes up all but 12 of the state’s fire districts. The routine inspections look for proper staffing levels, sufficient equipment, proper maintenance of equipment, communications capabilities and availability of a water source, among other things.
In addition to the Robbinsville station – which received a “5” rating – Graham County’s rural service area received 5 for municipalities and population centers that it covers other than Robbinsville, and 9E for rural Graham County. While lower ratings do not necessarily indicate poor service, a higher rating does suggest that a department is overall better equipped to respond to fires in its district, according to the state fire marshal’s office. Higher ratings can also significantly lower homeowners insurance rates in that fire district.
The rating system ranges from 1 (highest) to 10 (not recognized as a certified fire department by the state because it does not meet the minimum protection requirements), with most rural departments falling into the 9S category.
A 9S Inspection means an inspection conducted by the Office of State Fire Marshal, to ensure compliance with the requirements in order to receive a public protection classification rating. It is the lowest passing score. The 9E designation that the county’s rural service received applies to a fire district that meets the certification requirements, but contains properties within its jurisdictional limits that are more than five – but within six – road miles from a responding fire station.