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Dewey Fire gave an update on what happened with the department in 2020 during the Dewey City Council meeting on Monday night.

Chief Jacob Cox said Dewey Fire ran a total of 522 calls regarding fire, medical and utilities last year. Cox said their guys have been dedicated and committed to serving the City of Dewey and the surrounding communities. He said they have 16 guys on staff.

In a statement, Chief Cox said:

"Every second counts in responding to an emergency call. As a volunteer fire department with that high of a call volume we shouldn't have to sit back and wonder if we have any guys around during the midday hours when in reality nine out of ten times they're working. Having a full-time person / persons on and at the station will take that added stress off of our administration. We shouldn't have to rely solely on our mutual aid unless those resources are needed at an emergency scene.

During their update on Monday night, Chief Cox and Assistant Fire Chief Cody Meade came to the Council to ask for consideration of adding one to two full time firefighters. Meade said they'd love to have a guy or two that would work as a firefighter / medical responder during the daylight hours of 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. He said it would be helpful as the area's population and needs grow.

Having a full-time firefighter on hand would give the Dewey Fire Department someone that could respond to an emergency medical page as they do now, but they'd have the guarantee that they'd have someone at the station ready to go during those peak hours during the day. Meade said the full-time staffer would also be able to radio ahead for mutual aid in the event of need for more fire apparatus and personnel need.

Meade said they have eight to ten guys now that are over exceeding the expectations or requirements needed to be a full-time fire or medical responder. He said all 16 staffers meet the requirements that are needed.

The Dewey Fire Department spoke to fire departments in Nowata, Sperry, Cleveland, and Collinsville. Meade said they also looked into the fire departments in Caney and Independence, Kansas. He said Caney has a full-time medical staff that is housed with the police department. The others towns had a full-time fire staff and they have populations that are below that of Dewey's population.

If approved by the Dewey City Council sometime in the future, the duties of the full-time personnel at the Dewey Fire Department would include emergency call response, fire hydrant testing, station and truck maintenance, inspections. Chief Cox said he believes the community deserves full-time fire and / or medical personnel in Dewey.