Fire safety is a year ‘round endeavor, and the Hopkinsville Fire Department are urging folks to stay safe as the nights get cooler but outdoor conditions get drier.
Hopkinsville Fire Lt. Nathan Stewart appeared on WHOP’s Early Bird Show recently and gave some tips on how to stay fire safe, and at the top of the list was making sure you’re cleaning those lint traps on your clothes dryer regularly. He says they just recently responded to a house fire that began with a dryer catching fire.
Right now, with drought conditions settled strongly over the area, even small brush fires can quickly grow out of control, so a burn ban is in place for the City of Hopkinsville and numerous surrounding communities.
And, it’s starting to get cooler at night, with a couple of nights being down right chilly earlier in September. That means heating units will start kicking on for the first time in months, and Lt. Stewart says don’t panic if you smell smoke—but if you’re ever worried, you can give the fire department a call.
He also gave an update on Fire Station Five, which is currently undergoing construction at 101 Walton Way off of Fort Campbell Boulevard. Lt. Stewart says they’re hoping to have everything wrapped and ready to go by next month, and this fire station is not only going to bring better response times to that part of the county, it will serve multiple purposes for the fire department.
Hopkinsville Mayor J.R Knight says along with the updates to the existing building, that station will also have new fire vehicles ready to go.
That’s good news for a fire department that’s in the top five for busiest departments in the state. In 2024, the department had around 4,000 firetruck runs and over 15,000 EMS runs.