WAGENER, S.C. () — An Aiken County fire department may shut down, leaving people worried about safety and response times. “Our fire department’s gonna be familiar with the area, whereas someone else might not be. We’re on a dirt road, so, you know?” resident Judy Rico said.

The Wagner Fire Department faces closure due to a funding dispute with Aiken County. Wagener City Council unanimously approved separating from the fire department in January.  That means the fire department operates on its own – without funding from the city.  A petition is circulating, warning of longer response times, especially in rural areas.  And with the fire season being as busy as it has lately, that doesn’t sit well with people who live here. “We need ’em. ’cause they local, they know where all the houses are, they know what they need to do and they get it done,” Shannon Heath said.

“We were getting around 250 to 300 currently. But ultimately one of our goals always as a fire department here for the town is for the citizens to have a voice,” Interim Fire Chief Adrien Pilot added. He warns the department may not survive without county support. That could lead to higher insurance rates and delayed responses. “Financially it cannot support a department because for example, last year, by the end of our fiscal year, we were pinching pennies and making sure the lights were off so we could pay the bills,” recalled.

Several structure fires were reported over the weekend, mostly in New Holland’s district. Fire crews responded to each one, often providing mutual aid to neighboring departments. “There’s a lot of fires around here, a lot. I live literally right beside, I’m the one that called the fire in last night and if they wouldn’t have been there, we would’ve been fighting the forest fire,” Samuel Bryant shared.

“You’ve got an operating department here, you’ve got 31 men and women who are willing to serve and continue serving. There wouldn’t have to be reconfigurations of departments,” Interim Fire Chief Pilot added.

The Fire Department is working on a proposal for a new station. The site has already been surveyed and staked out. “We just hope that the efforts that we’ve set forth aren’t in vain because quite honestly, I’d hate to think that we’ve put all this effort forward and that we’re just gonna, in the end be without our citizens to serve,” he said.