Some Walker County residents will see an increase in fees for fire services after the Walker County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved the increase.
The fee increase is for the Walker County Fire and Rescue District, which includes the unincorporated county and the city of Chickamauga. Walker County’s other municipalities have their own fire services.
Fire Chief Blake Hodge said at the meeting the increase is needed so the county can maintain its federal rating that determines home insurance costs and maintain the current improvements in emergency response time.
“Irreversible brain death: four to six minutes, a fire doubles in size every minute,” Hodge said. “Our greatest enemy is time. We’re trying to overcome time.”
Response times for service calls have improved over the years, he said. In 2016, the department’s average response time was more than 14 minutes, while in 2022, the average response time was just more than nine minutes.