This past Saturday afternoon, members of the Betheden Volunteer Fire Dept., along with family, friends, supporters and members of the community, gathered at the new Betheden VFD Substation on Hwy. 25 North, for a ribbon-cutting and dedication ceremony.
Betheden VFD Chief Randal Livingston stated that the new station will help to provide better coverage and response times for residents in the district, and there are plans to add substations on Loakfoma Rd. and Sturgis Rd. in the future. The stations will help the Betheden district to maintain a fire rating of 7, which is significant in that lower ratings result in lower home owner insurance premiums.
Livingston added that there was much discussion about the new station until they reached a point of either building it or dropping the matter completely. Enough money was raised to start the project and the decision was made to move forward.
In his remarks, Livingston stated that volunteer firefighters are a unique community, as they leave their homes and families at all hours, in all manner of weather and circumstances to help their neighbors. He added that helping others is what being a volunteer is all about, and they respond to not only fires, but to weather emergencies, medical calls and much more.
Winston County Fire Coordinator Jody Garrard stated that volunteer fire departments are the backbone of their communities, and whenever they are needed they will respond.
