Chicamacomico Banks Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department has received a Public Protection Class 4 rating, a major achievement for a volunteer fire company.

The rating was announced by North Carolina Insurance Commissioner and State Fire Marshal Mike Causey.

The rating is effective June 1, 2019 and applies to insurance policies renewed or purchased after that date.

In December 2018, officials with the state’s Department of Insurance Office of the State Fire Marshal conducted a routine inspection of Chicamacomico Banks.

In a letter to Chicamacomico Banks Fire Chief Michael Daugherty, commissioner Steve Causey wrote, “I commend you and your department for your dedication and commitment to making your community a safer place to live.”

Daugherty said the rating represents a lot of hard work with firefighters putting in time and energy. “This was not a one man show.”

Dare Fire Marshal Steve Kovacs saluted the fire department for the “dedicated work on the part of all the volunteers.”

In April 2017, Chicamacomico Banks, which served Rodanthe and Waves, and Salvo volunteer fire departments merged. At the time, Chicamacomico had a 6 rating and Salvo a 9 rating. On Jan. 1, 2018, the 6 rating was extended to Salvo property owners.

With this new lower rating, property owners may see reductions in fire insurance costs.

Fire departments are evaluated based a uniform set of criteria, including:

• Needed Fire Flows, which are representative building locations used to determine the theoretical amount of water necessary for fire suppression purposes.
• Emergency Communications, including emergency reporting, Telecommunicators, and dispatching systems.
• Fire Department, including equipment, staffing, training, geographic distribution of fire companies, operational considerations, and community risk reduction.
• Water Supply, including inspection and flow testing of hydrants, alternative water supply operations, and a careful evaluation of the amount of available water compared with the amount needed to suppress fires up to 3,500 gpm.
• Community Risk Reduction, community efforts to reduce the risk of fire, including fire prevention codes and enforcement, public fire safety education, and fire investigation programs.

Chicamacomico Banks scored 63.71 out of 105.5 points available to earn the 4 rating.

READ ABOUT MORE NEWS AND EVENTS HERE.

RECENT HEADLINES:

Marine Fisheries Commission overrules fisheries director and adopts gill net prohibition

DMF, WRC extend year-round striped bass season closure to inland, joint waters