Fire and Emergency Management

Click here for organizational chart

Fire Coordinator:

 

           Ron Morgan

 

           Phone: 828-625-9333

           Fax:     828-625-9760

           Email: Firechief@TownofLakeLure.com

 

Fairfield Mountains Fire Chief: Gary Wilson

 

Chimney Rock Fire Chief: Buck Meliski

 

Bill’s Creek Fire Chief: Jim Howell

 

 

Residents: Click here to learn about Code RED, the town's emergency notification system

 

 

For emergency fire or medical assistance call:   911

 

The Lake Lure Fire Service is comprised of three volunteer fire departments due to the town’s larger than normal geographic size, lake, and serpentine boundaries. The town contracts with Fairfield Mountains Volunteer Fire Department, Chimney Rock Volunteer Fire Department, and Bill's Creek Volunteer Fire Department for fire protection and emergency management services. These departments train and respond together to incidents inside and outside the corporate limits of Lake Lure.

The three departments operate four pumpers, four pumper/tankers, two tankers, four brush units, and two support units out of four stations with approximately 70 volunteer firefighters.

 

In addition, the North Carolina State Forest Service has a special weapon to combat forest fires in our area.   It is a Canadair CL-215 firefighting airplane. This airplane can carry and drop up to 1,400 gallons of water on a fire with great accuracy.   It can refill from lakes by skimming the surface and yes, Lake Lure is large enough for it to refill.   Some may remember when a plane like this filled water from Lake Lure in late 1980 for a large forest fire in the area. The plane is located in Hickory, North Carolina and is a great asset to our area.  

 

When boating, if you spot this large yellow airplane, or if the lake patrol officer tells you it is coming, then pull your boat near the shoreline and wait until clear.   This aircraft will not refill on the lake after dark.

 

Also, the Town of Lake Lure has a bright red fireboat that functions as a mobile fireplug to provide high-pressure water to fire trucks ashore where there are no water supplies available.   It also has a water cannon to help fight fires in and around the lake.  

 

The departments provide many services to the town in addition to fire protection including emergency management services. Other services include clearing trees from roads for emergency access, evacuating citizens in time of danger, operating shelters when needed, searching for lost people and assisting with Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and rescue squad when requested.

 

Each fire station has a fire chief responsible for their departments operations. Fairfield Mountains and Chimney Rock Volunteer Fire Departments also have very active ladies auxiliaries that support the departments by assisting in fundraisers, helping with shelters, providing food at extended emergencies and a tremendous amount of moral support.

 

The Lake Lure Fire Coordinator serves as a liaison between the town and the fire stations, and is overall responsible for fire protection in the town. He works very closely with each of the fire chiefs regarding joint training, drills, responses, budgets, policies, apparatus purchasing and many other issues. In addition, the fire coordinator is responsible for fire inspections, fire investigations, and emergency management inside the town and heads the town emergency planning committee. The fire coordinator also manages the town emergency operations center, and coordinates all emergency operations during major emergencies or disasters.

 

The fire coordinator serves as the town safety officer and arranges safety training for town employees, heads the safety committee, and keeps necessary paperwork for OSHA.

 

If you are interested in being a volunteer firefighter at Bill’s Creek, Chimney Rock, or Fairfield Fire stations, please call 828-625-9333.