Area Served[]
The Big Canoe Fire Department serves an over 8,000-acre gated community along the border between Pickens and Dawson counties, about an hour north of Atlanta. The department is staffed by both paid firefighters and roughly two dozen volunteers, and is designated as Pickens County Station 4.
History[]
There have been two separate incarnations of the Big Canoe Fire Department, separated by an almost decade-long interregnum.
When the planned community was first established in 1972, fire protection was provided by the maintenance department. By 1975, a private volunteer fire department had been formed. This operated until 1998, when the community's POA board voted to dissolve the department and contract fire protection services to Dawson County (who inherited much of the department's equipment and apparatus). A string of major incidents in the early 2000s led to an ISO classification study, which revealed major deficiencies in fire suppression coverage within the community, leading to the re-establishment of a separate fire department in 2006. Dawson County Emergency Services and Pickens County Fire Rescue still provide mutual aid as needed, including automatic aid for all medical calls, as the BCFD lacks off-property transport ability.
Fire Stations[]
| Station | Address | In Service | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 43 Wolfscratch Drive | ca. 1985-2017 | Demolished and replaced by new building on same site |
| 6 | 2142 Hubbard Road | 2006-???? | Now Dawson County Station 6 |
Apparatus Roster[]
All pump/tank measurements are in US gallons.
Station 4-1 - Main Gate (Wilderness Parkway)[]
- Engine 1 - 2007 Sterling / American LaFrance
Station 4-2 - Wild Turkey Bluff[]
- Engine 2 - 1995 Ford F-800 / E-One (1250/1000) (SN#16363) (Passed on to, then ex-Dawson County Emergency Services)
Station 4-3 - 43 Wolfscratch Drive[]
Opened 2018
- Engine 3 - 1997 Pierce Saber 4x4 (1250/750/40F) (SN#EA830) (Ex-Citizens Fire Company (West Virginia))
- Truck 3 - 2006 American LaFrance (1500/500/50' Tele-Squrt) (Ex-Oklahoma City Fire Department)
- Rescue 4 - 2019 Chevrolet Silverado 5500HD 4x4 / 2012 Southern Fire (150/250)
- Responder 4- 20?? GMC Sierra 4x4
- BLS - 2007 Chevrolet Suburban 4x4
- Utility - 200? Chevrolet Silverado 4x4
Station 4-4 - Ridgeview Drive[]
- Engine 4 - 2004 Freightliner FL 80 4x4 / E-One (1250/500/30F) (SO#127962)
Station 4-5 - McElroy Mountain (Wilderness Parkway)[]
- Engine 5 - 1982 Ford L-700 / Saulsbury (750/500/30F) (Ex-Bayville Fire Company (New York))
Station 4-7 - Maintenance Yard (Wildcat Parkway)[]
- Engine 7 - 1992 E-One Protector (1250/500) (SO#9881) (Ex-Engine 3) (Ex-Birdsboro-Union Fire Department, ex-Marcus Hook Fire Company)
- Brush 7 - 1975 Dodge Custom 300 4x4 / Pierce (300/250) (SO#8801C)
- Air & Light - 1996 International 4900 4x4 / E-One walk-in (Ex-Erma Volunteer Fire Company)
Other Assignments[]
Lake Petit[]
- 2017 20' Custom pontoon boat / 50HP
Lakes Sconti and Disharoon[]
- Jon boat
Station/Assignment Unknown[]
- Special Ops trailer
- 2022 Pierce Saber FR6000 4x4 (1500/500) (SN#36139)
- Kubota
Retired Apparatus[]
- 2012 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 HD 4x4 / Southern Fire brush (150/250) (Ex-Rescue 4) (Retired December 2019, bed reused for new Rescue 4)
- 1995 Ford F-750 / American Eagle pumper (1250/1000) (Ex-Engine 3) (Passed on to Dawson County Emergency Services)
- 1987 GMC TopKick / Pierce walk-in rescue (Ex-Air & Light) (Ex-Boles Fire Protection District) (Retired January 2020)
- 1984 Chevrolet Sierra C30 / Wheeled Coach (Ex-Rehab)
- 1983 Ford C-8000 / FMC pumper (1000/1000) (SN#8900) (Passed on to, then ex-Dawson County Emergency Services, now in storage, to be sold) (Ex-Engine 5)
- 1973 Chevrolet C60 walk-in rescue
- 1958 GMC 870 / American LaFrance pumper (500/-) (Ex-Engine 2)