PERRY, Ga. — Houston County is taking important steps to ensure fire safety keeps pace with the county’s growth.

At Tuesday night’s county commission meeting, commissioners approved the hiring of nine new firefighters . This will allow all eight Houston County fire stations to be staffed around the clock, 24/7.

Station 8 in Perry is one of three stations that currently lack 24-hour staffing, but that will soon change. Malachi Callaway, a firefighter at Station 8, explained how the station’s coverage was previously limited outside normal working hours.

“On the weekends and after 5 [p.m.], we relied on volunteers to come in and grab a truck or wait for the next closest station to respond, which would expand response times,” Callaway said.

According to Commissioner Gail Robinson, once t

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