Could 24/7 Paid Fire Crews Be Coming To Molino And Beulah?

May 5, 2023

Career fighters could be coming 24/7 to the Molino and Beulah fire stations as a complement to current volunteer crews, but if funding is approved it could take well over a year to implement the plan, according to Escambia County Public Safety Director Eric Gilmore.

Gilmore said he’s making a funding request for the four-firefighter crews for the upcoming budget year, but that’s all preliminary at this point. If the request makes it all the way through budget meetings and were to be approved by the Escambia County Commission in September, certified fighters would have to be hired or cadets trained — a process that could take 18 months or more.

Both Molino and Beulah would become what is known as combination departments –volunteers would still respond to calls alongside the paid crews. Fire stations currently also respond to neighboring areas to assist.

A new fire station is already a done deal for Beulah. A groundbreaking was held a year ago for the nearly $8.5 million “Bradshaw-McNair Fire Station” on the site of the old Beulah Fire Station. It will be named in honor of Chief Dwain S. Bradshaw who died in the line of duty in November 2019, and Chief Steve McNair who dedicated over 50 years to fire service in Beulah and helped rebuild the current station after fire destroyed the original fire station in 1977.

Pictured top: The Molino Fire Station. Pictured below: Groundbreaking in May 2022 for new Bradshaw-McNair Fire Station in Beulah. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.

Comments

2 Responses to “Could 24/7 Paid Fire Crews Be Coming To Molino And Beulah?”

  1. tax prayer on May 5th, 2023 9:58 am

    Get ready for tax increase

  2. What!!! on May 5th, 2023 7:35 am

    When I first moved to this area in 1999, MSBU was $25.00. Now it’s over $100.00 (residential). Thank your tax payers ECFR…

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News