RICHBURG, S.C. — Volunteer fire departments say they're struggling to find staff, and it's putting pressure on the staff they already have.
Richburg Fire Rescue in Chester County was called to assist with a Fairfield County fire early Tuesday morning but had to turn around because they were needed in their own county.
The fire they were assisting with was at Dutchman Creek Marina and Restaurant on Lake Wateree in Winnsboro.
Early Tuesday morning, several trucks and 20 firefighters fought the blaze with neighboring jurisdictions called in to help. One of those departments was Richburg Fire Rescue in Chester County.
Assistant Fire Chief Mike Ehrmanntraut says crews were canceled halfway there, when suddenly they got a call in their own county.
"It's a challenge because if we're down there helping them and we have incident, there's no one here to immediately respond," said Ehrmanntraut. "We were called to a fire out in Fairfield, we were resent to a fire that was occurring in Great Falls."
The house fire in Great Falls left one person dead, according to emergency services.
"The biggest problem is, if we don't have enough members to respond to an incident, we can't effectively conduct a rescue," Ehrmanntraut said.
Richburg Fire Rescue has four employees, so when there's a call, those four employees head out on that call. That means they then must rely on volunteers to come and staff the station.
"It's not a case that you won't get help, it's a case that that help will take a little longer to get to you," Ehrmanntraut said.
Like many other volunteer stations, Richburg Fire Rescue needs volunteer firefighters.
"We certainly do need a lot more firefighters to step up and volunteer," Ehrmanntraut said.
The extra helping hands, would not only alleviate pressure, but could help save lives. "If we don't have those numbers, we can't conduct that rescue."
Counties across the state need volunteers. If you're interested, head to the South Carolina Volunteer Firefighter's website and click on the "join the team" page.