Just in the last 14 years, we’ve grown substantially to meet the needs of our rapidly growing community. In 2009, our department experienced a rebirth when the Emergency Services District (ESD) Board moved from contracted services to an ESD-operated fire department — taking us from a totally volunteer fire department to a totally career ESD.

Another significant change has been in our community’s Insurance Services Office (ISO) rating. Formerly, we had a split-class 5/9/10 classification, which meant that two classes could apply based on the distance from the property to the responding fire station or whether the property is within 1,000 feet of a creditable water supply. However, in March 2014, our entire fire district (including the city of Oak Ridge North) achieved the coveted ISO Class 1 rating — and we were the first Montgomery County-based fire department to do so. An ISO Class 1 rating is the best rating a community’s fire protection can receive, and it provides for the lowest premiums available for fire insurance. If you haven’t done so already, download our ISO information letter, and share it with your insurance professional to let them know you reside in a Class 1 community. You should see savings on your insurance premiums.

Our response area continues to develop, and our population is increasing, as more citizens and business owners choose South County to build their homes and open their businesses within our district.  Due to this rapid development, ESD #8 is planning a 7^th fire station in the Woodson’s Reserve area, East of Grand Oaks High School.

As the Chief of the South Montgomery County Fire Department, I'm proud to lead this team of 150 professional firefighters and support staff as we stand ready on a moment’s notice to provide quality services to you whenever you need us.

We’re pleased to share the redesigned South Montgomery County Fire Department website with you. We encourage you to browse the user-friendly site to learn about the history and progression of our department, our community outreach programs, our natural disaster preparedness and fire safety information, and more.

If you have questions about the site or our department, please call us at 281-363-3473. One of our staff members will be happy to get you the answers.

Fire Chief Troy Koteras