The Greensboro Fire Department has released its annual report that shows 2024 was a year of challenges and achievements.
Ongoing annexations on the city’s outskirts mean more ground to cover, even as the force has been down by as many as 40 people. To help bridge the gap, the department has relied heavily on county fire squads throughout the region.
Sending dozens of personnel to Western North Carolina to assist in Helene recovery efforts was another major challenge. Deputy Chief Dwayne Church says his team saw devastation they had never seen before, and grew from the experience.
"The 61 personnel that we sent to western North Carolina had lessons learned and challenges that a lot of people in the fire service just don't face," says Church. "And they'll be able to pass that down to newer firefighters, and it will carry on for generations to come."
According to the report, the department responded to roughly 41,000 incidents in 2024. Church says they’ll begin testing for another recruitment class starting this summer.