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Introduction to the District Welcome to the Mid-County Fire Protection District web site. Look around and enjoy your visit. A little history of Mid-County. The District covers a large portion of Camden County in Missouri. The coverage area includes a large portion of Lake of the Ozarks, which is a beautiful recreation and vacation area. The Lake of the Ozarks is one of the few lakes that still allow homes to be built on lake front property. In 1986, the citizens of the area saw the need to improve fire protection services. A citizens committee was formed and promoted the formation of a fire protection district. The issue was placed on the August 1986 ballot and passed easily. Since then, the District has grown in stations, equipment and personnel. In 1999 it became apparent that the growth of the community was overrunning the growth of the Fire District. Again a citizen committee was formed and they reviewed a proposal the District had for a $2,000,000 bond. After several months of research and discussions, the citizens committee came back to the District with a proposal of there own for a $5,500,000 bond. The committee said that the District was being too conservative and a presentation convinced the Board of Directors to move forward with the $5.5 million bond. The bond was placed on the August 2000 ballot and passed with overwhelming support. With the proceeds of the bonds, we improved our equipment, stations and apparatus substantially. We currently have six firehouses, twenty-nine trucks ranging from brush trucks to a 75-foot aerial ladder truck and we also have two fire/rescue boats. Through this effort the District was able to reduce the ISO, Insurance Services Office, town class rating from a 9 to a 6. What this means to the homeowner is a cost savings in their homeowners insurance policy. In most cases, the savings in insurance cost was more than the increase in taxes. We have recently added our Fire Prevention Bureau that is run by Fire Marshal Chris Bachman. His office handles our building codes, fire safety inspections, in-service inspections, fire works request and a host of other responsibilities. The District responds to a little over 1,000 calls a year now. As an example of how the District has grown, our first full year as a fire district in 1987, we responded to a total of 96 calls. These emergencies are handled by a host of professional well-trained brave men and women who are both full time and volunteer. We are very proud of the cooperation and support we receive from the community we serve and are always looking to improve and increase the service’s we provide. If you have questions, stop by our Headquarters Station in Camdenton, MO or give us a call at 573-346-2049. If you want to contact me directly, call my cell phone anytime 573-216-5900. Fire Chief |