Fire Services

The Copiah County Fire Coordinator serves as the coordinator for the fire protection in the unincorporated areas of Copiah County. The network of eleven (11) Fire Protection Districts proudly serves the citizens living in the areas outside the cities of Crystal Springs, Hazlehurst, and Wesson within the county lines. We protect a primarily rural area measuring approximately 800 square miles with a population of 29,449. The network consists of 11 volunteer fire departments stations with a group of almost 300 volunteer firefighters and emergency responders.

The area is divided into eleven (11) Fire Protection Grading Districts: 

• Allen

• Barlow

• Bethel

• Dentville

• Crystal Springs

• Georgetown

• Hazlehurst

• Hopewell

• Smyrna

• Stronghope

• Wesson

Firefighting Duties

Firefighting requires an individual to perform a variety of duties. The conditions they work under vary greatly and are often adverse in nature. The physical and mental demands of it are rigorous. The calls they respond to can range from structural fires, vehicle fires, woods fires threatening structures, grass fires, removing severely injured people from auto accidents, treating people who have been victims of crime. Providing emergency medical services involving trauma, illness, and personal tragedy is another major role of a firefighter.

Firefighting requires constant training and updating of techniques to stay current on valuable fire and life safety information. All firefighters are required to have at least 24 hours of continuing training each year.

Training is the key to education. Education is the key to safety. Safety is the key to maintaining a lower worker's compensation loss ratio. That is why the Copiah County Fire Service encourages all firefighters to take advantage of any and all training available to them.

In a city, a normal fire department operation would be 24 hours a day - 7 days a week - 365 days a year and they rely on hydrants as their water source. Outside the cities, water sources are limited to ponds, lakes, and rivers. Volunteer fire departments must transport water by tanker truck to wherever it may be needed.

As times change, it is harder and harder to retain highly trained and capable volunteer firefighters who have to juggle their time between work, family, fire training, fire department monthly meetings, and helping their fellow man in times of emergency.  Copiah County Fire Service has around 300 men and women who risk their lives responding to emergency calls and donate their time to the County to protect their neighbor's lives and property.  The volunteer firefighters are the backbone of the Copiah County Fire Service.  They go about their work seeking little or no recognition. They offer the security and stability ensuring there will be a response when disaster strikes.

The Copiah County Fire Services mission is to save lives and protect property of and for the people of the unincorporated areas of Copiah County.

A downloadable full size map in PDF format can be found here.

                                            VFD Grading Fire Districts Map