VIDEO: After more than 30 years of discussion, two fire districts in Blaine County are taking decisive steps toward consolidation to better serve their growing communities. The BC South Fire Protection District and Ketchum Fire Protection District have developed a comprehensive consolidation plan that would create Blaine County Fire & Rescue, a name chosen by firefighters themselves through polling. The consolidation would help eliminate redundancies in staff, technology and equipment while establishing a balanced tax levy across the coverage area.
Fire Chief Kevan Crawley of BC South said the current system has clear limitations when it comes to major emergencies. “No one fire department has sufficient staffing to handle a complex incident in Blaine County. So it only makes sense that we bring as many of those agencies together as possible so that we can all be on the same page and have better team cohesion,” Crawley said. With the goal of full integration by 2027, Crawley said the departments aim to be as transparent as possible throughout the process.
