LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – When emergency calls come in, rural fire departments across Lubbock County don’t worry about city limits or department names as they work together to protect area citizens.
Fire departments in small towns are typically made up of volunteers who rely on other volunteer departments to help fight fires through a mutual aid system.
“That’s part of living in the country, that’s part of living in Texas and part of living in the USA. We take care of each other,” said Russ Perkins, chief for the Idalou Volunteer Fire Department.
Coordinated response system
When someone calls 911 for a fire, dispatchers know which departments are assigned to which territory, Perkins said.
“So, if it was our territory, it would notify the dispatcher to send to Idalou, and underneath that there’s a second department and third department also listed,” he said.
Perkins says the fire departments are familiar with one another and have open communication whenever forces come together.
“New Deal and Roosevelt, we pretty well all know what our equipment is and what our capabilities are,” Perkins said. “When we start on those fires that are automatic aid, whoever the incident commander is, so if it’s an Idalou fire and I’m here then I’m the chief that day, and then I can start calling those other departments and say send me your tanker,” Perkins said.
Volunteers always needed
Help is always needed at volunteer fire departments, and volunteers don’t need years of experience to make an impact, Perkins said.
“You don’t have to be the one driving this truck and learning how to pump it, you don’t have to be the one putting on the SCBA and taking that hose and running through the front door,” Perkins said. “There’s always, always, always something to do on a volunteer fire department.”
Copyright 2026 KCBD. All rights reserved.