The Chattanooga Fire Department is joining the Tri-State Mutual Aid Association to expand emergency services.
A signing ceremony will take place on Thursday at 3 p.m. at Chattanooga Fire Station 1 at 218 East Main Street with Mayor Andy Berke, County Mayor Jim Coppinger and Fire Chief Phillip Hyman taking part..
he Tri-State Mutual Aid Association is comprised of 50 fire and rescue agencies that protect at 13-county area surrounding Chattanooga and North Georgia. The association’s primary mission is to provide routine second alarm through fifth alarm response and special calls to fire, haz-mat, specialize rescue incidents and other events. Member departments also have multiple automatic aid agreements in place. Long term events are coordinated between Tri-State Mutual Aid assets and Tennessee and Georgia Statewide Mutual Aid Systems including Southeast Tennessee District 3 and Northwest Georgia District 1.
Joining the Tri-State Mutual Aid Association will create the legal authorization for the Chattanooga Fire Department to respond to fire calls, rescue incidents, and other emergencies that may occur in Hamilton County’s municipalities outside the Chattanooga city limits, officials said.
Chief Hyman said that joining the Tri-State Mutual Aid Association has been a long time coming. "We've talked about joining this organization on and off for many years. Thanks to Mayor Andy Berke and County Mayor Jim Coppinger, we finally got the support we needed to make a reality. It's a win-win for all fire departments in this region, including our own."