By Ali Holcomb
Holton Recorder – October 8, 2014
Submitted by Newz Group Clipping Service – October 30, 2014

Click on photo to view full-size image.
Jackson County is served by more than 150 fire personnel–area residents who risk their lives to provide fire protection and rescue services throughout the county.
Jackson County has eight fire districts that are managed by fire chiefs. The districts and their fire chiefs include:
Mayetta Fire District #1 – Todd Stauffer serves as the fire chief, and the department has 18 firefighters
Soldier Fire District #2 – Ryan White serves as the fire chief, and the department has 15 firefighters.
Douglas Fire District #3 (Hoyt) – Ed Kester serves as the fire chief, and the department has 20 firefighters.
Holton Fire District #4 – Kevin Ingels serves as the fire chief, and the department has 32 firefighters and four dispatchers.
Delia Fire District #5 – James House serves as the fire chief, and the department has 12 firefighters.
Netawaka Fire District #6 – Jonathan Edwards serves as the fire chief, and the department has 13 firefighters.
Whiting Fire District #7 – Paul Ludlow serves as the fire chief, and the department has 12 firefighters.
Potawatomi Tribal Fire Department – Doug Schriener serves as the fire chief, and the department has 30 firefighters.
The Holton Fire Department was established in 1894 and serves the city of Holton and rural fire district #4, which includes the cities of Circleville and Denison. The Holton Fire Department covers 250 square miles and consists of three fire stations. The main station is in Holton and the two satellite stations are in Circleville and Denison.
The Potawatomi Tribal Fire Department participates in a mutual aid agreement with the Hoyt, Mayetta and Delia Fire Departments. All four departments automatically respond together on all occurring fire and emergency incidents.
All fire departments respond to a variety of calls, including vehicle fires, structure fires and out of control burns.
Holton Fire Chief Kevin Ingels reported that on Saturday, March 29, there were 250 controlled burns occurring simultaneously in the county, which he noted was a new record. During that weekend, county firefighters were dispatched to a total of 35 fires.
Each fire district has a fire board that meets monthly to oversee the taxable dollars each fire department receives. The fire board members set the budget for the fire districts each year, approve equipment purchases and apply for grants.
The Jackson County Commission oversees fire districts established in Holton, Whiting, Soldier, Mayetta, Netawaka, Delia and Hoyt. The Potawatomi Tribal Fire Department is under the authority of the tribe.
To promote Fire Prevention Week, Potawatomi Tribal Fire Department members are hosting an open house at the station, 15482 K Road, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday.
The open house will include educational activities and displays, fun activities for kids, including face painting and inflatables, and other fire-safety demonstrations. In addition, the fire department’s fleet of emergency vehicles will also be displayed.
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National Fire Prevention Week: Thanks, firemen!
By David Powls – Holton Recorder
Many children say that when they grow up they want to be firefighters.
The work of firemen is pretty straightforward and honorable–put out the bad fires when needed and serve and protect your community.
In our newspaper work, we have taken photographs at many out-of-control, raging fires of all kinds–from prairie fires spreading across thousands of acres of the Flint Hills in Greenwood County on a windy, spring day to various terrible house fires and car fires in several Kansas counties, including this one.
We have even been enlisted, over the years, to help drag some fire hoses when the need for more help immediately was evident. Most of the time, however, the firemen on the scene get fire under control quickly.
I have never seen a firefighter anywhere in Kansas who was not giving 110 percent of effort and dedication to the emergency tasks at hand, whether it was 1 in the afternoon or 4 in the morning.
The dedication of our firemen, most of whom are volunteers who give their time for professional training and service, is something that we take for granted until we are the ones in need of help.
On short notice recently, we have been able to obtain photographs of a couple of our fire teams in the county. Those photos are published in this edition of the newspaper. We would like to collect and publish group photos of all local fire teams.
It’s National Fire Prevention Week. It’s a good time to remember and thank our local firemen. They answer emergency calls all days and nights.
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