Pender fire station saves money and lives

PENDERLEA, NC (WWAY) — The Penderlea fire station was established back in 1957. And since then, it hasn’t received a new insurance safety rating.

According to Kim Furtado, a local insurance agent, safety ratings are graded on a ten point scale:

“So, the lower the number, the better it is for the town. The quicker the response, the more accessible the water source, the better the training and equipment is. The higher the number, the less likely that they are able to get to a water source quickly or to respond as quickly.”

The Penderlea fire station was a nine for decades, costing residents and businesses hundreds of dollars more in fire insurance premiums.

With a spread-out community and a staff partially made up of volunteers, the odds were stacked against Chief Hardison.

“The more rural the area,” Furtado says, “the higher the score probably is going to be just because of that water source, because the fire department typically would be volunteer fire department, and therefore accessibility or their response time would be more limited.”

But this week, Chief Hardison says the years of training and inspections were finally rewarded:

“For us to go from minimal coverage rating of a nine, to go to a four was definitely something that was exciting.”

With a four as their new score, residents within six miles of the town and station could possibly save hundreds of dollars a year.

“Come February first, they’ll be able to call their insurance company,” says Hardison, “take advantage of this rate reduction, and they’ll be able to save on their premiums.”