One volunteer fire department now has a paid staff, and another department will soon follow suit. South Surry Volunteer Fire Department began paying part-time firefighters on Feb. 1, according to Tony Tilley, the department’s chief.
Tilley said the four part-time firefighters will work eight-hour days, with one person on duty from 7 a.m. through 3:30 p.m. on Monday through Friday. They will rotate between the department’s two stations, and each will work no more than 25 hours per week.
Tilley said the move had been in the works for quite some time. His department worked for about a year to put it in motion.
The change in direction has been something with which South Surry and other departments have been tangling for years, as pools of able and willing volunteers dry up.