New Surfside Beach fire chief aims to hire more firefighters, second fire inspector

SURFSIDE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) - The new chief of the Surfside Beach Fire Department is just weeks into his role, and one of his first tasks is filling crucial roles within the department.

Chief David Nelson said one of his top priorities is improving the department’s staffing shortage. He said the department only has the staffing for two firefighters on an engine, but safety procedures recommend they have four.

“We have a lot of guys doing 48-hour shifts, which can be tedious for them after a while,” said Nelson. “A couple here and there isn’t too bad, but on a regular basis, we’re concerned with sleep patterns being deprived and stuff like that.”

Now, the department hopes to add three more firefighters. Those positions were included in this year’s town budget.

As for next year’s budget, the department wants to add four more firefighters. One of those four would be a fire inspector. The department currently only has one.

“We have roughly 750 businesses throughout Surfside,” said Nelson. “The goal is to try to get through at least all of them in two years. Currently, right now, it takes us three years to get through that.”

The department is applying for a grant from the federal government to help with the new firefighters’ salaries. But, Nelson said even with the grant, the town of Surfside Beach would be paying about $130,000 in two years.

“This is going to be a difficult issue,” said Surfside Beach Mayor Robert Krouse.

Krouse said town leaders will discuss next year’s budget at a retreat next week, but they will have some hard decisions to make, including raising taxes for residents.

“We still have to do a lot of work and see how can we do this, hopefully without raising millages, but that’s always a possibility,” said Krouse. “If we try to do it without any tax increase, then we have to look at where do we cut money somewhere else.”

Nelson said the three firefighter positions in this year’s budget will be posted soon.

Copyright 2024 WMBF. All rights reserved.