State Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey was in Pinetops last week to present Fire Chief Steve Burress and the Pinetops Fire Department with a $5,000 check from the N.C. Surplus Lines Association.
Causey, who is also the state fire marshal, presented 12 grant checks to fire departments in Hertford, Bertie, Northampton, Halifax, Beaufort, Washington, Martin and Edgecombe counties.
Causey noted that Pinetops is the fourth-smallest community in the state to carry an Insurance Services Office rating of Class 3 out of 10 behind Bailey, McAdenville and Beulaville.
The Pinetops Fire Department is a volunteer fire department and is a division of the Town of Pinetops, although it is fully manned by volunteers.
Pinetops’ Class 3 rating — up from a 5 in 2020 — is considerably better than the 9S carried by most rural departments.