After many months of hard work, the integrated Edgerton-Milton Fire-EMS Department launched Wednesday.
The new department will serve the 25,000 residents and businesses in the greater Edgerton and Milton area, according to an announcement by the Edgerton Fire Protection District. It will service 220 square miles across Rock, Dane and Jefferson counties, notably for the cities of Edgerton and Milton and towns of Albion, Fulton, Harmony, Johnstown, Koshkonong, Lima, Milton, Porter and Sumner.
The department plans to add more stations across the region to improve response times — saying 99.5% of all urban areas will have, on average, a five-minute response. Rural areas will have a 228% improvement in response time. Fire Chief Randall Pickering said this move was no small task, but is grateful for everyone who believed in its mission.