MORGAN COUNTY, W.Va. — Morgan County is poised to hire its first paid firefighter after the County Commission authorized the Fire Board last week to advertise for a full-time Fire Board captain.
The move follows more than a decade of shrinking volunteer ranks and understaffed departments, which have left fewer responders available for emergencies across the county, The Morgan Messenger reported.
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Morgan County’s fire protection is provided by four all-volunteer departments: Berkeley Springs, South Morgan, Great Cacapon and Paw Paw, each a separate legal and financial entity. Coordination is done by the Morgan County Fire Board, which includes one representative from each department, three citizen members and a representative from the County Commission.
County officials approved the Fire Board Captain position and transferred $64,978 from the state-funded Fire Protection Fund to cover the salary. They also signed a Memorandum of Understanding between the County Commission, the Morgan County Fire Board and the Berkeley Springs Volunteer Fire Company to modernize fire response.
Under the MOU, all paid personnel will operate as the Morgan County Fire Department under a Fire Board Captain. They will be shared across volunteer companies and serve at a department’s request only.
The county will share one paid firefighter across the volunteer departments for 40 hours a week. That firefighter must be trained and approved by the hosting department’s fire chief, follow that department’s policies and will be paid by the Fire Board with coverage under the county’s workers’ comp.
Morgan County has long wrestled with how paid staff should work alongside volunteers, while still trying to boost volunteer ranks through incentives and outreach. Under the MOU, the Morgan County Fire Department captain oversees on-duty paid personnel, but incident command stays with the volunteer fire chief or designated volunteer fire department officers, per state law.
