The Escambia County Board of Commissioners voted 4-0 to unify management for county Fire Rescue and volunteer firefighters.
Under the unification, the volunteer fire fighters will now have a better ability to dictate functions within each station.
Escambia Fire Chief Ken Perkins said the move was “wonderful†and called it a great day for all.
“Our volunteers have been working so hard,†he said. “This will definitely give us better operations (throughout the county). It’s a great starting point.
“We know we’ll have to cordially fine tune some things, but the spirit we have throughout the fire departments will allow us to overcome those obstacles.â€