A new rating on the quality of service provided by the Chicota Volunteer Fire Department should mean better insurance rates for those living in its service area, which is generally from Arthur City to the Chicota, Forest Chapel, Garrets Bluff and Belk areas of Lamar County. In some cases, insurance rates could be cut in half.
The State Fire Marshal’s Office of the Texas Department of Insurance has reclassified the Chicota department as a Public Classification 5, district-wide. Fire Chief Shane McDowra said the rating is district-wide, which means that all of the 400 or so households in the service area can enjoy the rating, which is on par with many municipal fire services, and it is not necessary to be close to a fire hydrant to receive the classification.
“We basically established a municipal plan in a county district,” said McDowra.
The department has been working on improving the rating for ten or more years. Efforts began when former Fire Chief Clark Pugh was in charge, and now Chief McDowra has been continuing to make the upgrades to make this rating possible.
Their efforts have included setting up “Automatic Aid Responses” which are service agreements with other departments. Those departments cooperating are Powderly, Faught and Lamar Point VFD’s. Because of water tank shuttles with the automatic aid departments, Chicota was able to prove that it could guarantee delivery of 250 gallons of water per minute to any location within their fire district, without the need for a close hydrant.
The department also purchases fire engines and built a substation in the west side of their fire district, so all areas are served. Many upgrades to equipment had to be made with overall tens of thousands of dollars spent by the department.
A rating of PPC 5 for the Chicota department is a leap from the bottom of the ratings system to one which is better than 75 percent of the nation’s fire departments. The department was previously rated as a class 9 for any structure within five miles of their single station, and a class 10 for all others. A class 10 means no coverage recognized, according to McDowra.
The new rating will take effect in August, McDowra said, and homeowners should check with their insurance providers, keeping in mind that the change in rates does not occur automatically by insurance providers. Homeowners should inform their insurance carriers to confirm their property is in the Chicota district.
The department assumed debt to improve its service, McDowra said, adding that he hopes gratitude for decreasing fire insurance premiums will, in turn, encourage extra donations to fund the department.
“We hope that they continue to support us,” McDowra said.
The rating came after the department was inspected, as well as inspections at the Paris-Lamar County 9-1-1 dispatch system at the Paris Police Department, and also inspection of the Lamar County Water Supply. The inspection was made by the Insurance Services Office, an independent inspection agency which reports its findings to the State Fire Marshal and the Texas Department of Insurance.
Article: Rick Browning
