The formation of the Lake Hamilton Fire Protection District has been a "twofold blessing" for its membership, Lake Hamilton Fire Department Chief Doug Davey said.

Voters in the department's service area south of Hot Springs created the district, voting in a February 2018 special election to list the department's annual dues on real property tax bills. A 2019 law made the payments a prerequisite to paying real estate taxes, effectively making payment of fire district dues mandatory.

The improved rate of collection that's resulted added equipment and staff that's elevated the department's rating. The department said Insurance Services Office conferred an ISO classification of three, effective Tuesday. Departments on the lower end of the one-to-10 scale are considered to have more assets, personnel and faster response times than those on the upper end, meaning lower insurance rates for homeowners.

The department said its rating has improved from five to three since the formation of the fire district in 2019, but members aren't paying more for the improved service. Dues have remained flat since the district formed.

"We didn't have to raise the dues, and we were still able to purchase new equipment and lower the ISO rating," Davey said. "It's kind of a twofold blessing. We haven't raised the dues of assessments and, potentially, you're able to get a lower insurance rate if you live in our district."

Dues are listed on tax bills the Garland County collector's office mails in February. According to information from the collector's office, it's collected $1.15 million on behalf of the district. The 2021 tax bills mailed earlier this year included $510,272 in 2022 district dues.

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Davey said the revenue purchased a new engine, a $389,000 apparatus that arrived last August. The district acquired a second aerial device, purchasing a used 2001 ladder truck for $14,000 at a Texarkana Fire Department auction. The additions contributed to the improved rating, which was also a function of round-the-clock staffing at the department's Highway 290 headquarters.

"We have five firemen who live there and take rotating shifts to give us 24-hour, seven-day-a-week coverage," Davey said. "It gets our apparatus out of the station in a timely manner, so we can get on scene and become more effective at what we do. Having those fireman on property is a great benefit to us. It helped us out quite a bit with our ISO."

The department has auxiliary stations on Albright and Catherine Parks roads and the 4000 block of Highway 290. Its fire boats are docked on lakes Hamilton and Catherine. Davey said adding a station in the Red Oak Drive area would further improve the ISO rating.

The department sold its Burchwood Bay Road station after the city of Hot Springs annexed the Burchwood Bay and Twin Points area in 2016. It said the expansion, coupled with the city's 2018 annexation of more than 600 acres near the Hot Springs Creek Basin of Lake Hamilton, reduced its service area by 20%.

The resulting loss in revenue prompted the department to seek fire district status.

Print Headline: WATCH: Lake Hamilton Fire Department improves ISO rating

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