About the Eclectic Fire Department
The Eclectic Fire Department covers a 54 square miles fire district from 2 stations. Station 1 is located in Historical Dowtown Eclectic on First Ave. and Station 2 is located at the Eclectic Industrial Park on Middle Rd.Today, because of the EMS Division, the Eclectic Fire Department has a staff of 35 volunteers, 3 full-time, and 5 part-time personnel to run the ambulance and fire calls 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. The current ISO rating is a 6/9. The fire department has 3 engines, 2 tankers, 1 brush truck, 1 rescue truck, 2 ambulances, and 1 multi use vehicle. All of the apparatus in the fire department are 1998 or newer with the exception of Engine 3 which is a 1978.
The fire department proudly boasts about its 43 members and their certifications, having 30 of 43 certified firefighters, 11 paramedics, 6 Basics, and 11 first responder/drivers. The Eclectic Fire Department gets very little money from the town, approximately $10,000 per year. The majority of the money comes from what our county calls the fee bill. There are 21 volunteer fire departments in Elmore County. Each has its own district. In 1990 the Elmore County Volunteer Fire Fighters Association petitioned the voters in the county to pass a fee bill. At that time when you paid your property tax you had to pay an additional $25 for a residence and $50 for a business. This money was given to the volunteer fire departments based on the number of houses and businesses in their district. In 2006 voters were asked to double this amount, and they gladly did so. The fee bill money for Eclectic is around $78,000 annually. This money can only be used for fire department equipment and cannot pay for any salaries. This how the EFD was able to purchase a new 2009 KME Engine and a new 2009 KME Rescue truck.