'We need help,' Carl Junction struggles with firefighter shortage
CARL JUNCTION, Mo. — For several years, there's been a nationwide decline in volunteer firefighters.
Xavier Perkins says fighting fires is a family tradition.
'My dad, my uncle, they've been working around the area for a long time.'
So when it came time, joining the Carl Junction Fire Department as a volunteer was an easy decision to make.
'You know, growing up in the fire station essentially, it's just kind of something I always, you know, enjoyed being around the guys here, and enjoyed helping any way I can.'
His dad, Carl Junction Fire Chief Joe Perkins, says unfortunately, that's not the case for many people.
'We need help,' said Chief Perkins.
Chief Perkins says when he first joined the Carl Junction Fire Department in 1999, there were 69 firefighters on the roster.
Today, that number stands at 34.
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'It's not just us, it's not just southwest Missouri, this is all over the country.'
According to a report by the National Volunteer Fire Council, in 2020, there were just over one million firefighters in the U.S.
Of those, nearly 678,000—or 65 percent—were volunteers.
That same report shows there are nearly 30,000 fire departments in the U.S.
Of those, nearly 19,000 are all volunteer, and 5,300 are a mix, like Carl Junction.
Only 2,700 of those are staffed with a fully career force.
'Back in the day, on this department, it was one of those things where, you know, shop owners, farmers, you know, people who worked the mines, when they had time, if there was a fire, they would volunteer their time and they would come and ride out on a truck. It's not like that anymore,' said Chief Perkins.
Chief Perkins says the steadily declining number of volunteers is likely due to several factors, among them, time.
'Everybody works a lot of hours.'
But he says agencies like his can work around that—offering to let volunteers do what they do best.
'And it doesn't even necessarily mean that you have to go running around like the rest of us crazy people, you know, charging into buildings that are on fire. There's so many other opportunities.'
Xavier says spending time with his dad and uncle is a bonus—but the real attraction to being a volunteer firefighter is knowing the difference he can make.
'Growing up in this fire station, that's all I've seen, is just guys willing to put their lives on the line to come out here and help make people's lives better, essentially, you know, when they're in rough places.'
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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